When All Is Forgotten
by i luv niki4444
Summary: When Eragon's world is at its end, he makes a wish. A wish that, ultimately, could make or break Alagaësia. He wishes for her and she, in turn, wishes for him.
1. Beautiful Bird

"When someone you love says goodbye you can stare long and hard at the door they closed and forget to see all the doors God has open in front of you."

_-Shannon L. Alder_

* * *

**_When All Is Forgotten_**

_Prologue: Beautiful Bird_

* * *

The air shook with the screams of the dying. The world was a battlefield on this night; as it had been for the last seven days and six nights. The good fought valiantly, slicing demons and healing the wounded, but it was all for not.

You see, a demon has more stamina than the average man. They are stronger, smarter, they have special abilities. So how is it, that a bunch of _humans _have lasted even this long against a million demons?

Especially the young girl who stood battle ready at the front of it all.

A bow was planted in her hand, a stern grimace on her face. Despite her obvious exhaustion, she stood tall and proud; shouting orders to platoons of men and shooting arrows when a demon came too close for her liking. Her usually pristine white shirt and green skirt were smeared with blood and the many holes proved that not all of it belonged to her enemies.

One hole in particular, spoke volumes of her self-control. A large gash, pooled by dark blood, lay across her stomach. Though its depth was uncertain, the dark spots in her vision and the way her blue eyes were dazed told that it was deeper than she made it appear.

An explosion rang through the air and despite knowing that many of her men died instantly because of it, the girl yelled orders to run through. "Escape while the smoke is thick," she yelled and nearly fell to her knees as another explosion wasted the earth. "we can regroup another day. We can't keep fighting if we're dead!"

The men did as their General ordered and ran through the fire, despite the pain and the way it caught to their clothes. Once on the other side, they would have burns, they could even die in the fire; but they would not disobey her earnest request.

Kagome watched them go, wiping blood and sweat from her eyes and turning back to the front. Now that her men were safe, she took an assured step forward; only to freeze cold in her step when screams came from the fire.

It was not the scream of a man being ravaged by flames, but the scream of a man being cut apart by a sword. Swallowing thickly, she turned around and her eyes widened; there he was.

"How long have you been there?" She asked quietly and her voice shook with silent rage.

"Not long."

The emotion that rose within her caused her throat to swell and she forced down her tears, "You put me in command of this army, why didn't you _help them_."

She didn't receive so much as a frown from the silver haired man, he just continued to look at her with pitiless golden eyes, "They are your responsibility, not mine priestess." He turned his nose to the east and sniffed delicately, unnoticeably, "Come."

He held his arm out to her and Kagome stared at it for a moment, the claws and the maroon markings on his wrists. Over the last few years, she had nearly forgotten that he was capable of being cruel. He had shone her _humanity. _

He spoke such sweet words; he married her and made her his mate.

So, as she numbly took his hand and felt him lift her into his arms, she wondered why he was acting so cold toward her. Her vision blurred and she leaned against him heavily with her hand on her stomach; feeling the blood, she looked down suddenly worried.

Could this be the reason? Could it be because she was pregnant with their third child and had gone to battle anyway? "Sesshomaru is he okay?" she asked quietly, trying to catch his eye as he ran, but he would not look at her.

Seconds passed and the wounded cried for help, a healer, but there were none left. Surrounded by such death and terror, Kagome hid her face in her husband's shoulder, finding that she had to force back her tears again. She couldn't get emotional; it could get her baby killed.

"No." Sesshomaru finally spoke, "The pup is dying."

Her heart stopped beating with those words and she had to try even harder to hold her tears back, "Is there anything I can do?"

Sesshomaru was quiet, "Your abilities could heal you and the child." He paused and added, "This is our last chance to kill Naraku and it will take every ounce of your strength to do it. No one else can."

Her mind joined her heart in freezing, before going into overdrive. What kind of sick world did she live in? To choose between sacrificing her child or saving millions of people?

And did it make her even more sick to want to save her baby rather than those people? Images flashed of her daughter, Hitomi and her son, Daichi. If she chose to go back to them; no one would be safe, they would die. The baby would probably only live a few months before it was murdered.

There was only one choice. "We go to battle then."

Sesshomaru had known her answer before she said it and ran faster in response to her confirmation.

"WIND SCAR!" Inuyasha screamed from up ahead and Kagome saw a flash of light leaving carnage in its path until it seemed to meet something head on and dispersed. As the dust settled, a purple barrier flickered beyond and a male laughed darkly from inside it, "Ku ku ku! Give it up~!"

Sesshomaru quickly put his mate on her feet, ready to join the battle, but she grabbed his hand and when she spoke her voice shook, "I love you, to the moon, to all the stars, and back again."

He looked back at her and his stare wasn't cold, it was warm and kind, she'd never seen him look so vulnerable, "Miko," kissing her forehead, he pulled his hand away gently "be safe."

And he was gone. Lightning rippled and rain began to fall as green poison spewed toward Naraku.

Her legs were shaking and she didn't feel nearly as confident as she tried to outwardly portray. Reaching back into her quiver, she realized she only had one arrow left and almost in amusement, she considered how ironic it was.

It was almost like one of those corny action movies she always hated. There was fighting and death all around her, yet none seemed to take notice of the only one who could stop it. Her fingers tingled as she put the arrow in place and pulled back the string. A quick moment to aim and she was squeezing her eyes shut, silently cursing her shaking hands and the tears that blurred her vision. Blinking passed them; she took a deep breath and attempted to steady her hand.

When she released this string, she would kill her baby.

"Hit the mark." She whispered, letting go. The arrow glowed blue and flew true, straight toward Naraku. Inuyasha, seeing the arrow, quickly got his own attack ready, yelling, "BACKLASH WAVE!"

And for a moment, _for one **moment**_, she dared to hope. Maybe using up her power was worth it, her friends would survive, her family would be okay.

Then, Naraku moved. He had seen her arrow as Inuyasha had and in the time that Inuyasha readied his attack, Naraku moved away and his shield was missed by no more than an inch.

When the Backlash Wave hit; it couldn't make it passed the shield.

Only a moment later, a sudden pain to her back had her on her knees with her bow slipping from her fingers. In another, the numbness gave way to an explosion of pain and her vision fell away to dark splotches and too bright colors.

**_Thump _**

How had anything snuck up on her? She was supposed to be the Shikon Miko. She was supposed to be stronger than this. She was supposed to kill Naraku and save the day.

**_Thump _**

She squeezed her eyes shut and then blinked them open again in an attempt to clear her vision. Even this proved to be too hard a task and they fell shut again.

**_Thump _**

Something pushed her forward and her face hit the dirt, the excited laugh that followed was barely loud enough to be registered over the sound of her own heartbeat, but even the small warning couldn't prepare her for what followed. Something slammed into the source of her pain and twisted around.

She heard a terrible scream rip through the air and tears fell freely from her eyes.

_What had she done to deserve this? _

She had failed.

Naraku would set the world on fire, because of her.

She had been prepared to die, to watch her troops die, but never to fail.

Because failure meant not just that she wouldn't be around to watch her kids grow up, but that they wouldn't grow up.

They would never tease each other or prank each other. They would never brag about their height or crush on the castle gardener. They would never fall in love as she had been able to or grow old like her grandpa. They would just be there one second and the next, where would they be? Somewhere peaceful and far away.

**_Thump _**

_'The world is so cruel; maybe it's better this way… maybe…'_

No.

_No. _

She forced her hands open, reaching toward her back, toward the source of the smashing and twisting. Her hand collided with a foot and she grabbed at it feebly, her efforts only earning an evil laugh from the demon that had stabbed her.

This demon could be the demon to kill her children.

This was the demon that had killed her baby.

That was killing her.

She channeled her energy further than she ever had before, using the very energy that pumped her blood and made her heart beat.

**_Thump_**

She screamed again as the energy ripped away from her body and into the demon's, purifying him on contact. Her hands dropped down against her back, suddenly, they were too heavy to lift.

"I-I wasn't… s-s-strong e-eno-enough." She whispered through unwilling lips, unaware of whom she could hear walking toward her, but meaning it for her husband's ears. She clung to the pain as a way to ground her, but then it began to fade.

"You were." She heard and it was her best friend's voice, though she could no longer recall who that was, "You killed Naraku, and everything's going to be fine over here. S-So you can go, if you have to." The someone took her hand and she wondered how it was done so effortlessly.

How could the lie could come so easily to this person? She didn't know much, but she knew that she had failed.

She listened for more, but the words sounded muffled; like she was underwater and someone on the surface was shouting.

The noise of the battle fell away, the _world_ fell away, and one last tear fell from her eye.

_**Thump**_

**Thump**

**thump**

_'I wish I was stronger. I wish someone could have helped, so that if I fell, they could succeed.' _

And with only this thought in mind, Kagome Higurashi… died.

* * *

Eragon felt… there were not words to describe exactly how he felt.

Small, helpless, **trapped.**

Mostly, the feeling could be described as useless. He had trained long and hard, he had so many allies… and yet Galbatorix had caught him within his own mind.

His vision became blurry from the pain and he could hear his own heartbeat ringing through his ears. He tried to choke out pleas to his friends but it was useless, the heart wrenching, horrible fear was too much for him.

He was shied into the smallest corner of his mind and lashed with biting words and unbearable pain –courtesy of Galbatorix.

But the worst of it was not his own pain, but the suffering of his friends.

Murtagh lay on the ground unconscious. He'd put everything on the line for this one chance at escape, but now there was nothing he could do.

Arya looked up from her own battle with the fleeting hope that he was faring better, but her face crumbled into an expression of horror when she witnessed the helpless boy being held up by the king; as he would have been on his knees if not for him.

His vision went black as Galbatorix twisted the blade in Eragon's mind even further.

It felt to Eragon as if a nest of briars were ripping him apart from the inside. A scream racked his throat, and he went completely limp in the grip of Galbatorix's spell.

"Submit," said the king. He grabbed Eragon's chin with fingers of steel. "Submit." The blade twisted yet again and Eragon screamed until his voice gave out.

The king's probing thoughts closed in around Eragon's consciousness, restricting him to an ever-smaller part of his mind, until all that was left of him was a small, bright nub overshadowed by the looming weight of Galbatorix's presence.

"Submit," the king whispered, almost lovingly. "You have nowhere to go, nowhere to hide… This life is at an end for you, Eragon Shadeslayer, but a new one waits. Submit, and all shall be forgiven.

Tears distorted Eragon's vision as he stared into the featureless abyss of Galbatorix's eyes.

They had lost… **he**had lost.

The knowledge was more painful than any of his injuries, more painful than Galbatorix's probing mind.

'_I wish this had never happened! I wish… I wish I could have been stronger!'_ But there was more to his heart's desire than to have been stronger.

He wished that he alone had not been given the burden of being a Dragon Rider. That another could have shared the pain and glory with him.

* * *

Eragon found himself walking alone in a forest of white, undeniably lost, yet unaware of where he had been heading in the first place. And as thoughts of where he was heading came to mind, he wondered why he was heading there, who he was heading there with.

Why did he get the feeling he was not alone here?

"Hello?" He called softly, despite feeling an irrefutable urge to remain quiet.

He walked forward a few paces and stepped around a tree, only to catch sight of a dark blotch. Looking back, he saw that it was a girl.

She was chained to a tree that looked familiar to him and a second later he thought of its name. The Menoa Tree. Her head hung low and he couldn't get a make of her face, but her long, wavy black hair hung passed her waist and seemed to blend with her strange dark dress.

Even without seeing her face, he knew that she couldn't have been more than seventeen and he had to fight the urge to go to her and unchain her. Her body looked too delicate to be forced into chains and molded to a tree.

Staring at her, he got the feeling that she wasn't human, but wasn't an elf, which led to the question _what was she_? As if to answer, her head snapped up and her eyes opened.

Dark blue, electrifying eyes slithered into his soul and he was lost to their intensity.

"You make a wish, a wish for change  
We shall grant your wish and make a debt paid  
And so it is, the clock will turn back  
With an audible tic and inaudible tock  
We give you another, whom has made such a wish  
And bid you the best of luck by twilight's kiss"

Her voice was that of five individuals, both men and women, and sounded timeless, like it carried magic. "Eragon Shadeslayer," she drawled, "you have made a wish."

He stared back at her, fear in his heart and wondered if she was like Eva; if she was a human child twisted by the effects of a spell gone wrong.

Or maybe she was an illusion.

He swallowed tightly, unsure of what to believe at that moment, "Galbatorix, why have you sent me here?" he yelled, "What game are you playing now?!" His eyes shifted between the trees as if he expected an answer.

A dark chuckle redirected his attention to the girl and he briefly noticed that her features were elven; despite that he was sure she was something different, "The tyrant king is not here young Rider. It is only us and we have words to share."

Eragon observed them cautiously, still not sure if this was a trick, "What kind?"

"You made a wish." She repeated, "And we are inclined to… grant it."

"Grant it? Why?"

"Our guardian has made a similar wish." Was the simple reply, _"I wish that this would have never happened. I wish someone could have been there to share this burden and together, we would have been strong enough to win." _A smile appeared on the girl's face, and for some reason, it was creepy despite her beauty. "By granting yours, we can also grant hers."

He considered her words. There was no for sure way to know if she was lying or truthful, however, if he did not accept her proposal he would die anyway. "What now then?"

The twisted version of a grin that greeted him did nothing to ease his worries.

"The Shade is Slain, the Rider dead  
A brother's feud, an angel's touch  
Springs a trap, a trap of death  
To bring forth an unfortunate test  
A dragon hatches years before  
The young replacing old once more  
He swore to kill, she swore to save  
Now we watch the madman rave  
When you cannot handle your soul anymore  
Look under the Menoa Tree once more."

With this last word, Eragon's mind was blurred and he fell into a deep sleep.

* * *

I luv niki4444

OKAY!

So basically... I decided to revise Dragon's Breath.

A LOT.

And when I was revising, I realized I really didn't like the plot I had before so I just decided to change it.

...And change it. And change it. And then I realized it just wasn't Dragon's Breath anymore so I should make a new story. o_o

Ta. Da. o_o

xD Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy this!

I'll have another chapter out soon! xD

_-Niki_


	2. Sitting in Your Tree

"It's only after we've lost everything that we're free to do anything."

_-Chuck Palahniuk_

* * *

**_When All Is Forgotten _**

_Chapter 1: Sitting in Your Tree_

**Announcement: The Prologue has been REVISED. You should probably go back and read it. :D **

* * *

The morning was crisp and the sun still low on the horizon, but the small village was already awake and bustling. Carvahall, it was called.

The village didn't have more than a hundred people and it was situated in a valley far north of anything important on the map. So far north in fact, that all who heard of it –though there were not many- thought it daft to put a city in such a place. It was common knowledge that the farther north, the less food and more predators. Of course there were other little villages north of even Carvahall, but they were even less heard of than it.

And so, in a place so far and dangerous, who would leave… a child.

That was the thought that ran through the local blacksmith's mind as he listened to the wails of the babe situated in front of his door. He questioned whether it was right to close the door on the child; pretend he hadn't heard it or seen it.

But then… he peeked back into the house and cursed himself as the telltale sound of footsteps rang down the stairs.

It was too late to pretend. His wife, Elain would be there soon. She must have heard the crying and decided to find out what the commotion was.

"Horst dear, who is it?" Her voice held a tone of worry and he felt himself soften as he watched her smooth out her dress skirt and wring her hands nervously.

Horst looked back at the baby, feeling his amusement give way to grim decisiveness. "No one." He replied calmly, swinging the door shut.

The slam only made the child scream louder and she moved forward, passed him, and attempted to open the door. She was stopped when he grabbed it after it opened only a crack and fixed her with a hard look, "Elain, we cannot keep it."

Her eyes narrowed and she again tried to pull the door open, stubbornly continuing until, finally, Horst gave in for fear that she would hurt herself and the door opened.

One look at the wailing infant and she melted, scooping the baby into her arms and cooing.

Horst knew he was screwed, but he still had to try, "Elain, we don't have the money…"

A glare was thrown his way and she pulled the baby tight to her chest, "We can't let it die."

"Its parents could come back."

A sweet smile thinly masked the killing intent in her eyes as she nodded, "And we'll take care of her until they do."

Even after agreeing with her, Horst worried that if the parents did come back, his wife would still refuse to let go of the infant.

She had always wanted a girl.

* * *

"Coming through!" A girl's voice rang clearly through the air and all who heard it stopped to glance up. They shook their heads or laughed as a bright-eyed teenager dodged through the small crowd.

A smile was wide on her lips and long, wavy black hair smacked the village storyteller in the face; earning a scowl from under his wickedly hooked nose. She stopped momentarily, turning to smile sheepishly, "Sorry, Brom!" then continued on her quest.

She bobbed and weaved through the village occupants until the sweet sound of steel against steel met her ears. She smiled to herself and snuck between two houses, getting onto her knees; she crawled behind a large crate and peeked out spy on her victims.

Baldor and Albriech were testing out swords that their father had crafted only a few days ago. The early morning sun shone brightly on their sweaty tan skin as they battled it out –poorly, but still fascinating to the girl- under their father's watchful eye.

"Stop," he finally said, gesturing for them to separate, "These should work."

The girl out a soft sigh and got up from her post, _'Oh well, it was fun while it lasted.' _

She snuck back out as Horst, her guardian and the closest thing she had to a father, began to briefly chide the boys on how close their blows were. Even pulling their punches, sharp steel doesn't forgive a mistake.

"Have you seen that sister of yours today?" Horst finally said, clearly exasperated and the words caught her attention; making her pause in her escape.

Baldor smiled sheepishly, "Kagome ran off before mom could even get a word in edge wise."

Sister?!

A smile crept onto her face.

Kagome was an orphan. Her parents –whoever they were- had left her on Horst's doorstep as a baby and he was generous enough to take care of her. For that, she knew she could never repay him; try as she might. So to hear him refer to her as SISTER to HIS children… it was almost like he thought of her as a daughter.

!

A fierce blush rose to her cheeks and she ducked out of the alley, inwardly snorting. Like THAT would ever happen. Heaving a sigh, her shoulders slumped as she walked. _'Horst is too kind to leave a child in the gutters; but that doesn't mean I mean anything to him. He's a friendly guy that's all…' _

The truth was cold, harsh, and unforgiving, but it was reality and she wouldn't trick herself into believing something different.

So she squared her shoulders, gave a cheerful smile and laughed away the concerns of a villager whom had stopped to check on her, and walked away with a skip in her step. Not because she was actually happy mind you, but because she didn't want to worry anyone.

She kept the smile up as she moved, but her mind raced through different activities that she could busy herself with to calm her thoughts. Finally, her eyes lit up with real joy as she remembered something.

A small smile crept to her face and she took off running; giggling as she went.

This time, not one person paid it any mind. She was struck with the zest of youth, they knew, oh what fun it is to be young.

* * *

Kagome was oblivious to the world; her eyes concentrated solely on her task, a little pink tongue darting out of her mouth and her cheeks puffed up like a beaver.

Nimble fingers worked vigorously, twining and moving stems in order to create perfection. It simply _had _to be flawless.

'_There, done_.'

She sat back on her heels and examined her work only to huff and lean in again, untwining and rewinding.

"Morning Kagome. It's a fine day isn't it?"

Kagome blinked, her eyes snapping from her carefully gathered flowers to look at the owner of the voice. "Oh, hello Horst." She replied happily and a smile graced her lips, "Yes it is, the breeze is just right!"

He chuckled, "Those flowers are beautiful. Who're you arranging them so enticingly for?" His question was innocent, but it had the undertones of mischief. He knew exactly who they were for.

"Eragon said he would be returning today!" Kagome chirped and -unaware of the friendly blacksmith's hidden amusement- began to hum as she grabbed a purple flower and matched it with a white.

They had to be _perfect_.

"The boy is becoming more handsome by the day if I recall." Horst's lips twitched but he forced it down, "Wouldn't you agree?"

"Yes, yes." She nodded along, now so focused on her arranging that she was mostly ignoring him.

"And I suppose you'll want to marry him when you come of age?" A few citizens of Carvahall had stopped in order to hear the conversations, all smothering smiles or shaking their heads.

Kagome was the village sweetheart, always going out of her way to help another villager or make the children smile.

…But they still found her naïve nature to be comical.

Especially right now.

"Of course, Horst. You know how it-"She paused from her twining and seemed to freeze as his words penetrated the walls of her thick skull.

Slowly but surely, a blush blossomed on her face until the soft, dusty pink became a raging inferno. "H-Horst!" She crowed, both shocked and embarrassed by his question.

'_Why I ought to… I ought to throw these flowers at his head!'_

Looking down regretfully at the banquet, she decided perhaps not _these _flowers.

But some kind of flower!

"Don't tease the girl Horst," a rumbling voice muttered behind her, clearly he'd just been passing by, "Or you'll set the idea in her head."

The blush on her face deepened, "Brom, lovely to see you."

"I'm sure it is." He replied, nodding her way. "Are those flowers to congratulate Eragon on a successful hunt?"

She nodded and her flush subsided, "Yeah."

Brom rolled his eyes, being one of the few in the village that didn't particularly like her. He was old and wise and he knew her type. At the first sign of trouble she would be running for the hills. Besides, she was too… cheery for his tastes. "And if he brings nothing back?"

"It'll be to congratulate his return."

Brom gave pause and inwardly deliberated, before muttering lowly to himself and telling her, "I saw him walk into Sloan's earlier; if you hurry along he may still be there." He nodded to her once again and went on his way, which was now made clear by a few small creatures tucked in his belt.

Kagome's head snapped in the direction of her least favorite butcher shop and was surprised to see Katrina – Sloan's _daughter_ – running toward them like a bat out of hell.

"Horst," she whispered, both breathless and panicked, "Come quickly! My father is being stubborn with Eragon. H-he won't sell to him. They're close to blows!"

Kagome trailed behind, worrying like a mother hen, and they made their way to Sloan's butcher shop.

When they reached the door, Horst winked at Kagome, straightened himself, and then proceeded to make a show of slamming the door open. Snorting, Kagome searched the shop for something more interestin- there. She caught a glance at her crushes –because she was undoubtedly crushing- back while he whirled around and made eye contact with Horst.

Eragon.

Even now, caught up in mischief and having been on the hunt for days, he was handsome. He stood two or three inches taller than her and his frame, however skinny, was lithe. His brown eyes were always sparkling with the same trouble he was creating and his hair was the color of darkened gold.

But it was not his looks that made her gravitate toward him, no… it was the shit eating grin that could usually be found on his face.

Like right now, in this serious situation, he sent her that smirk, nodded to her, and just like that; she melted.

Katrina's father glanced at the group wearily, "He won't-"

"Quiet," announced Horst. "Sloan, what have you done now?"

"Nothing," he shot Eragon a glare, spitting, "This… _boy_ came in here and started badgering me! He won't budge no matter how much I tell him to leave. I even threatened him and he STILL wouldn't go!" Sloan seemed to shrink into himself the longer he looked at Horst.

Of course, Kagome mused, he couldn't be _blamed _for that. Horst was a sweet, funny man… but he was also big and threatening looking. He was Carvahall's smith, as his thick neck and scarred leather apron attested. His powerful arms were bare to the elbow; a great expanse of hairy muscular chest was visible through the top of his shirt. He even had a black beard, carelessly trimmed, roiled and knotted like his jaw muscles.

Overall, a very intimidating man, especially if you were on his bad side.

And more so if you were someone as small as Sloan.

Sloan was not only short in stature, but small in build. The only thing threatening about him was the blood staining his white cotton shirt and smock; though the large collection of knives that swung from his belt were also menacing.

"Is that true?" the smith demanded.

"No!" Eragon hissed, looking put out, "I offered this stone as payment for some meat and he accepted. When I told him I found it in the Spine he refused to even touch it! What difference does it make where it came from?"

"None at all." Kagome cut in, giving a hard, but unthreatening glare –due to her big eyes and tiny arms- to Sloan. "Why won't you sell to Eragon?"

"I don't need to explain myself to you runt!" He spit in return, his face turning red in his ire.

"Sloan," cut in Horst, "I've no love of the Spine myself, but why not sell to the boy?"

Now properly distraction from the woman he detested, Sloan shot him a grumpy look and licked his lips, "This is my store; I can do what I want."

Katrina stepped out from behind Kagome and flipped her auburn hair, "Father, Eragon will pay! Just give him the meat and we can go have dinner."

"Go back to the house; this is none of your business… I said go!"

Katrina's face hardened and she marched out of the room with a stiff back.

Disapproval was clear on Eragon's face and Horst tugged on his beard before saying reproachfully, "Fine, you can deal with me. What were you going to get, Eragon?" His voice reverberated through the room.

"As much as I could."

Horst pulled out a purse and counted out a pile of coins. "Give me your best roasts and steaks. Make sure that it's enough to fill Eragon's pack." The butcher hesitated, his gaze darted between Horst, Kagome, and Eragon. "Not selling to me would be a very bad idea," stated Horst.

With a glare, Sloan left to head into the back room. There was frenzy of chopping and low cursing. Finally, after a series of uncomfortable minutes, he returned with an armful of wrapped meat. His face was expressionless as he accepted Horst's money, and then proceeded to clean his knife as if they were not there.

Horst scooped up the meat in his arms and walked outside.

Kagome grabbed one roast, stuck her tongue out at Sloan –who brought his knife down hard on a piece of meat nearby as if to answer- and followed Eragon outside.

The crisp night air rolled over their faces, refreshing after the stuffy shop.

"Thank you, Horst. Uncle Garrow will be pleased."

Horst shook his head, chuckling, "I've wanted to do that for a long time. Sloan's a troublemaker; it'll do him some good to be humbled.

They spent some time chatting –as well as arguing whether or not Eragon would take the meat back or Horst would take a strange rock- until Kagome's interest was perked by mention of Roran.

"-can you get it to her?"

"Of course."

"He wants her to know he will be in town when the merchants come, he will see her then."

"That's all?"

Eragon blushed, embarrassed, "No, he also wants her to know that she is the most beautiful girl he has seen and he thinks of nothing else."

Horst's face broke into a sly grin and he winked at Eragon, "Getting serious now isn't he?"

"Yes, sir."

"Don't you think it's 'bout time _you_ got serious with a nice young girl, Eragon?" A teasing eyebrow was raised and Eragon's cheeks turned even pinker.

"G-Give Katrina my thanks. It was awfully bold of her to risk her father's punishment for me. Roran would have my head had anything happened to her."

Horst chuckled, amused by the seventeen year old's quick diversion, "Alright, but know that she'll be fine. Sloan doesn't know she came to find me so I doubt he'll be too hard on her. Before you go, will you have supper with us?" He gestured to Kagome and himself with a fond smile.

The look Eragon sent him was truly regretful, "I'm sorry, I cannot. Garrow is expecting me." He tied off the top of his pack and hoisted it onto his shoulders. "B-But… if you wouldn't be opposed to it sir, Garrow had asked that Kagome come back with me if she was awake." He flushed, this time a little more pink than red and much harder to see in the dark.

"Well I am awake." Kagome replied good-naturedly, having cut in before her guardian, Horst, could reply. "I suppose it wouldn't be too much trouble to walk down the road with you and stay a while." She shot the blacksmith a pleading glance.

"Well," the big man replied, "As long as she's back before three days' time." He looked at her sternly, "Don't forget about the order I asked you to help me with."

She nodded happily and went to Eragon's side. "Of course, I'm not that scatterbrained."

With that, Eragon hefted his pack up again and sent a farewell gesture Horst's way while Kagome waved frantically.

Kagome looked to Eragon and smiled, "Shall we be on our way?"

* * *

**_i luv niki4444_**

WOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Now, the next few chapters will have quite a bit of focus on how Eragon and Kagome feel about each other. Please don't hate me if you're not an Eragon/Kagome fan D:

xD

I hope you like it and a huge resounding thank you to **Dark Angel Kenzie, Otaku Neko Ninja Miko Tenshi, and gincitri** for you awesome reviews! Thank you guys so much! x"D

Please leave a review telling me what you think (good or bad -but not a flame. Me fragile heart can't take it D:) and I promise to update again VERY soon.

_-Niki_


	3. You Needn't Yearn

"It's like I'm thirteen again and he's my crush. All I'm aware of in this entire roomful of people is him. Where he is, what he's doing, who he's talking to." _  
_

_-Sophie Kinsella_

* * *

**_When All Is Forgotten_**

_Chapter 2: Your Needn't Yearn_

* * *

The walk through the forest was a quiet one, quiet footfalls and a few grunts being the only real source of noise.

It was slower than it usually would have because of the heavy pack on Eragon's back, but his excitement to return home gave him enough speed to make it a comfortable pace.

The silence gave Kagome plenty of time to nervously ponder how she'd give Eragon the flowers she'd so carefully gathered for him.

"Kagome." He replied lowly as the farm came into view.

"Yes?"

A small grin appeared on his face and he looked at her from the corner of his eye, "I've got something for you."

Kagome's eyes lit up and she smiled, "Really?"

"Yeah."

She squinted through the dark, trying to get a good look at his pack. "Where is it? What is it?"

"I'll show you later," he replied, "After we see Garrow."

Kagome huffed mockingly, "I have to wait? And you had me all excited too…"

Eragon snorted and walked through the door of the old farmhouse –which Kagome was holding open for him- but otherwise didn't comment on her words.

Garrow was waiting up for him, and he smiled when he saw his nephew step through the door –although he remained oblivious to their guest. "Eragon, how went your hunt?"

He huffed, "It wasn't fruitful; but I did see a large herd. Bigger than I've seen in months." A small smile came to his face when he noticed his uncle's eyes soften, "It brings hope for future hunts."

"It may have been just luck." He smiled as his nephew's face fell and continued teasingly, "Or perhaps food will be less scarce this year." Glancing at his nephew's pack, he could see it was almost bursting, "… Eragon, what have you found?"

Eragon looked to his uncle and then gestured to his pack. "Steaks… from Sloan's."

Garrow's usually intense eyes grew greedy and he reached for the steaks more quickly than Eragon could hand them out. "Where did you get the money?" He wheezed, amazed by the amount and quality of the meat.

The smile that had appeared on Eragon's face vanished as quickly as it had come, "…Horst helped me out." Garrow's eyes grew hard and he started to hand back the steaks and his mouth moved to start a lecture. Eragon gulped and started desperately, "I could have paid for them. Sloan wouldn't trade with me; he almost refused to sell to Horst as well."

"We don't accept charity-"

"It isn't charity. I'm working to pay off the debt; Horst offered me a few odd jobs." He saw Garrow's anger waning and finished strong, "Sloan is being more unreasonable lately."

And just like he had hoped, Garrow sighed and diverted his anger toward the butcher. "Yes, well, we can only hope he will be more open-minded when Roran asks for Katrina's hand." A smile danced on his lips and the same mischief that burned in his nephew's eyes appeared in his own, "We shouldn't have to worry when it comes time for you to ask for _her _hand. Hors-"

"Uncle!" Eragon's face was aflame as he glanced nervously toward the doorway. What if Kagome had heard such talk?! There was only one villager whose name started with Hors and he only had one daughter…

Maybe she wouldn't put it together.

"Eragon," his uncle chided, "you have to remember to accept your feelings. Don't be embarrassed." Taking a moment to observe the teenager's face, he clapped him on the back, "You look almost as tired as I feel; why don't you get some rest while I take care of this meat? I'll see you in the morn."

Eragon smiled gratefully and nodded, unpacking the rest of the steaks with his uncle's help. "Goodnight Uncle."

"Goodnight Eragon."

He backed out of the house and quietly closed the door, putting a finger to his lips to shush the curious girl that stared at him through the widest of blue eyes.

He smiled slightly and offered his hand, to which she responded by grinning and taking his hand firmly in her own. She looked away as he tugged her forward anxiously and led her into the barn.

…And as they walked, she had the feeling that he was leading her into more than just the barn. Her stomach flipped with butterflies and her heart sounded so loud that she could hear nothing over the hard _**Thump Thump!**_

Still, she paid the feeling no mind, preferring instead to think about who was with her. Eragon.

A blush dusted over her cheeks and she closed her eyes, setting her mouth into a grimace.

"Over here, Kagome." Eragon said and his voice brought her out of the state she'd entered; that and the sharp, but gentle, jerk on her hand. Even in the dark, taking in his face she could see the playful smile, the excited eyes.

So she followed after him; like she always had when they were younger and he wanted to go on some adventure.

She could clearly recall following him into the Spine with the promise of riches and food; against Horst's orders. In the end, all she earned was a scar and a broken arm –courtesy of taking a nasty fall off the side of a waterfall. She had been angry with Eragon at first, she'd wanted to rage and throw a fit.

That is, until she saw him; teary brown eyes, his hands and knees bloody from the full sprint he'd taken to get back to the village, and that smile he was always putting on when he felt sad.

That was the moment she realized she liked him.

…Not very romantic and a little too early in life, but it was as genuine as love in itself. Messy, painful, but worth it.

A smile started onto her lips as she watched Eragon duck down in front of her and considered how little he'd changed.

He let go of her hand and slipped the pack from his shoulders, sitting down as he began to pull something out. He stopped and looked back up at her standing form and smirked, "Well come on then, we haven't got all day." He joked and she rolled her eyes, sitting with a small blow of her bangs. "A-and close your eyes!" Shaking her head, she did as told.

"What are you getting all worked up over?" Her voice was exasperated, but he ignored her lack of excitement by doubling his own. A soft ruffling was all that was given away to indicate the identity of her surprise; even as she strained her ears to find more.

"Alright open up." He whispered and she did so with exaggerated hesitance. What she saw next took her breath away.

In his hands was a large, oval stone; flawlessly honed in a fashion that nature could not achieve. Like the pale, misty white clouds it shone white with the slightest tinge of blue; black vein like lines spider webbed across its surface gracefully.

Never, in fifteen years, had she seen – or even heard of such a stone. Looking at it, she felt that she couldn't turn away; something about it tugged at her.

"Do you like it?" Eragon asked, becoming more anxious with each passing moment of silence.

She tore her eyes to him, to the stone, and back. "It's unreal… Eragon, I can't… you know I could never take this right?" her eyebrows furrowed when he raised his own, "I'm serious Eragon! This is… it's too much."

"No it isn't." he insisted, "I want you to have it." He grinned and nudged her arm with the stone, "Remember that deal we made when we were kids; we said we would always split whatever we found in the Spine exactly in half."

She remembered; they had made it right before she'd fallen off the waterfall. And it was good luck too, after she'd fallen, she was awake enough to notice a flash in the corner of her vision. A few days after she woke up in Gertrude's house she told Eragon about it. He came back with a handful of jewels; all of which helped to feed their families over two harsh winters.

She smiled slightly, "That was when we were children."

"It still stands," Eragon replied stubbornly and he gently laid the stone down on the floor.

Kagome paid no attention as he began to ruffle through his bag, "There's only one stone though- what on earth are you doing?" her eyes widened as he pulled out – no. "You have another one?!"

This stone was slightly smaller and was colored a vibrant blue with white veins spread throughout, but it was just as flawless and beautiful.

Looking back at the white, she couldn't help but think that as beautiful as the blue stone was, she didn't get the same feeling as she did with the white.

"S-Sorry." Eragon replied, a small blush on his cheeks. "I thought you would like the white better. You can choose-"

"No. It's perfect." Kagome said back and a smile finally came to her face as she picked up the white stone and marveled at its smooth feel. It was slightly warmer than she would have imagined, but that was probably because Eragon had it inside his bag for so long.

And as she lost herself to the stone, Eragon lost himself to her eyes.

His discovery of girls had been uncovered only a few years before. Nearing his tenth summer to be exact. They had been messing around in the Spine –as they always did at that age- and as he helped her down a large ridge, he grabbed her hand. Like the air had suddenly caught fire, he'd noticed how beautiful her hair looked.

He didn't understand why; maybe it was the braid Elain had spent so much extra time on that morn, maybe he finally noticed that her hair took on a bluish shade when light touched it, or maybe he'd just hit puberty early.

Whatever the reason, he dropped her hand like he'd noticed a snake crawling on it and she had, none too gracefully, fallen on her face; taking him with her after grabbing his pants leg.

He could remember wondering if all girls smelled as pretty as she did; and not two seconds later had shoved himself off her –pressing her face further into the fallen leaves and sharp twigs as he did so- and stormed off.

For the rest of the day he'd avoided her –due to the disturbing things his mind would conjure up whenever she was near- and eventually he faced the biggest problem of his nine and a half summers.

She'd come out of nowhere, running faster than if she'd been on horseback and _hugged him_. Proceeding to burst into tears; she asked why he didn't like her anymore. He hadn't a clue how to comfort a crying girl; being from a family of all men. So he did what he would have done with Roran.

He slapped her on the back, ignored her whine, and told her –in a grown up voice- to man up.

… His methods didn't work. In fact, she cried harder.

Eventually, called by the noise, Garrow came to calm her down and Eragon found himself on the wrong end of a stern lecture. – And a lesson in soothing a hysterical, crying girl. Later, the two kids made up after Eragon apologized and, in an attempt to show her that they were indeed friends, put poison oak in her hair.

The next day, they found out that the reason Elain had spent so much extra time on Kagome's hair was to sweeten her up before the big reveal. Elain's father, Gilbert, had passed on. The two had been close – She had affectionately dubbed him Grandpa Gills- and Eragon had once again found himself comforting a distraught girl.

Thankfully, he knew what he was doing the second time around.

A grim smile came to Eragon's face as the memories passed through his head. Everything had changed after that, at least for him.

He stopped trying to push her into things she didn't want to do –though at that point she didn't have much of a limit- and stopped picking on her. The everyday hugs she gave made his heart skip a beat and he found himself missing it when she grew out of the habit at thirteen.

He was knocked from his thoughts as his arm was softly tugged, blinking, his eyes focused on blue eyes and a little button nose. "Come again?" he asked, smiling with no small amount of embarrassment. These were things he should be thinking about when he was alone, not with her sitting beside him.

She bit her lip, "Which do you like better?"

"The blue," he admitted and she smiled, relieved. She hadn't wanted to take the one he preferred; he found them after all.

But she could have sworn she heard him add, "Matches your eyes." Under his breath.

That was just her imagination being overactive right?

…Right?

Regardless of the comment's validity, her face was quick to turn tomato red and she coughed lightly into her arm to hide her face, "That's nice; I would hate to take your favorite." She replied awkwardly, even giving a little nervous laugh.

The smirk he sent her seemed to show he knew what she was doing. "Yeah."

Her face burned even more red, if that was possible, "Aren't we going to go to bed… or something?! You have to be tired."

Eragon agreed without a fight, a smug smile on his face as he readied a bed of hay for her and one for himself. The two settled down for the night and Kagome turned off the dim lantern that sat near her grass bed.

Smiling wide now that her back was to Eragon, she could barely cover the urge to laugh uncontrollably. A burst of bubbly giggles fought their way up her throat and she tried her hardest to suppress them, even stooping to snuggling her stone tighter to her chest to stop the hysterical, ridiculous noises.

Still, despite her efforts, one made its way passed her lips, and that was enough to catch Eragon's attention.

"What is it Gnome?" he mumbled quietly, though his words were slurred for he was so tired he'd nearly fallen asleep as his head touched the straw.

'Gnome' was the nickname he had given her when he was too young to pronounce 'Kagome'. Horst had tried to teach him to call her 'Gome' instead, but somehow Eragon had convinced himself her name was Gnome.

The old nickname only made her laughter more uncontrollable and tears rolled down her cheeks as she silently sniggered.

"Gnome?" he sleepily asked, waking up a little because he hadn't gotten an answer.

Stifling her amusement, but not her grin, she shook her head and said, "Nothing, I'm just… happy."

His own lips twitched into a bit of a smile, "S'good. Night."

"Goodnight, Eragon." She replied softly, lying down. Throughout all of it, she hadn't put down the white stone once; in fact, she would not for the rest of the night. She held it tightly to her chest all night, humming to it before she fell asleep and she felt that, with her, was where it had always belonged.

Her last coherent thought before she fell into sleep was that she was glad Eragon had chosen the barn to hunker down in.

It was the only place his uncle could never find them.

* * *

**_i luv niki4444_**

Told ya I'd update soon! ;P

Anyway, I just have to say WOW guys. o_o I wasn't expecting so many people to like it! But now I'm like fangirling -OTHER PEOPLE LIKE INHERITANCE CYCLE/INUYASHA SSSQQQQQAAA

o_o

o_o

Okay, yeah that happened. xD

A huge huge HUGE thank you to Julia N SnowMiko, gincitri, Kira Kyuu, Guest, ultima-owner, Jayne, and Dark Angel Kenzie! Thank you all so so much for your awesome reviews!

* * *

Responses:

**Guest **chapter 2 . Jun 13

... Please tell me Brom isn't right about Kagome's type... The "run for the hills" type. Please.

_He isn't. xD Don't worry! _

**Jayne **chapter 2 . 13h ago

Yay an update I hope to read more soon :) hopefully kagome won't be afraid to fight or anything I can't wait to see what happens next

_Thank you! :D _

_It's hard to say, I don't want her to be unrealistically strong (which I've had an issue with in a few of my past writings). I'm rewatching the first Inuyasha episodes because they demonstrate her courage BEFORE she gets used to demons chasing her. xD_

* * *

Thank you guys for reading and I really hope you liked it! Please leave a review telling me what you thought (but please no flames, I'm a total crybaby with flames o_o) and I promise to update again soon! (I'm half done with the next chapter xD)

_-Niki_


	4. Be Free

Patriotism is a kind of religion; it is the egg from which wars are hatched.

_\- Guy de Maupassant _

* * *

**_When All Is Forgotten_**

_Chapter 3: Be Free_

* * *

Frozen water had Kagome rouse with a start, kicking and sputtering.

"Wake up, wake up!" Roran's voice laughed and she heard a splash, quickly followed by a loud yell.

Wiping water from her eyes, she couldn't help but chuckle as Roran danced beside Eragon's bed crowing and laughing. Eragon's face was beet red, whether from embarrassment or anger she wasn't sure. It was probably a mix of both.

One second he was on the bed, the next, he had tackled his cousin and the two were rolling around on the ground, pulling punches and shouting at each other. Laughs erupted from the boys and soon there weren't even wrestling, they separated, lying on the floor chuckling and sniggering.

"Your arm's a little weak there Eragon, now we know why you never bring a catch back." Roran said, winking at Kagome, "It's too much effort to pull back the string. By the time he's got it ready, the deer is gone."

"Oh shut up." Eragon groaned, but his smile didn't disappear, even when Roran reached over and gave him a noogie.

They drifted into a casual conversation regarding the day's chores and such while Kagome pondered how best to interrupt them. The task was saved for her, when a goofy grin appeared on Roran's face and he suddenly leaned forward excitedly, "So what did she say?"

Kagome watched curiously as Eragon's face twisted with confusion, "What did who say?"

"Katrina?" Roran said disbelievingly, "You did tell her right?"

Eragon reddened, "Um, no? Look I told Horst to tell her," he quickly supplied as Roran began to anxiously pace, "He'll tell me what she says and then I'll tell you. Simple as that."

Roran's frown was enough to warrant an embarrassed laugh from his cousin, "You… told Horst?" at Eragon's nod, he blanched, "Why don't you tell all the boys while you're at it?! I'm sure the gossip won't reach Sloan's ears."

Wincing, Eragon groaned, "Oh come on Roran, you know Horst will be quiet about it…" he gestured to the girl sitting behind him on the straw bed, "Look at Kagome, he managed to train her well enough and she wouldn't tell a soul."

"I'm not a dog." She muttered quietly, shooting him a dirty look even as Roran ignored her completely in favor of dramatically tackling his cousin, "Horst doesn't want to plant one on you brother!"

Kagome let out a noise of disgust and snorted, "I should hope not." A moment later, Roran's words sunk in and her face reddened as she sputtered, "Hey!"

She sooooo did not want to… t-ta plant one on Eragon. That was gross! …Just because his hair was perfected and he had that cute little dimple that popped up whenever he smiled – oh and did he have a nice smile. _'Who am I kidding, it's true.' _She admitted inwardly sighing but still attempting to sway the thought from her mind.

'_He probably can't kiss.' _He clearly had no experience with women –if he had, he never would have said that Horst 'trained' her-… and she knew that he had no history of sneaking into town to meet with village girls.

…Except for her; but that was different.

Mentally high-fiving herself for her quick thinking, she ignored the now squabbling boys and left the barn to get away from the testosterone, picking up the beautiful white stone she had dropped as she went.

"Eragon! Roran! Kagome!" Garrow's low voice called and she mentally whined, quickly circling around the house so it would appear she'd come from a different direction and finally spotting Garrow standing in front of the house.

"Oh hey Garrow!" She called and he whipped around, looked her up and down, then sent her a reproachful look, "You should have told me you'd come, I'd of put you in a room."

Kagome's lips twitched, "Right, I'll remember that for next time." She replied evenly.

Garrow's thin lips quirked into an amused smile and he walked toward her, chuckling, "You say that every time."

As grumpy as he pretended to be, she knew for a fact that Garrow enjoyed their little game of hide and seek.

It had started when she had been just a toddler, Horst had stopped by the farm with a few repaired tools and Boulder had followed him with her in his arms. Garrow fawned over the baby girl and she was left with Eragon while he and Horst visited. When they came back the energized three and four year olds were fast asleep. Neither had ever seen their child ever fall asleep so fast and it had become a routine gathering.

Fast forward a few years and the adults decided that the two should be separated. –Only for the two fathers' to find that they both threw tantrums.

Another year passed and they began to sneak into a room together and, after being reprimanded, started hiding from Garrow.

He sent her a suspicious, wry look and rolled his eyes, "Where are the boys?"

"Not sure." She replied, smiling angelically, -but inwardly laughing evilly-, she nodded to him, "By the way, I swear I heard fighting near the barn earlier…"

The moment the words passed her lips a crash was heard and Garrow was off, muttering curses and hiding a smile. She followed quietly, shaking with silent laughter.

By the time they reached the barn Roran and Eragon had split up –though that could have been due to Garrow's heavy footfalls and ragged breathing more than a resolution.

Still, they were convincingly civil.

Roran smiled as Garrow came into view and replied, "Father, welcome to our humble abode." He plopped down casually on the hay that Kagome had slept on and winked, "What can we do for you?"

Following his cousin's lead, Eragon awkwardly laid down on his straw bed, "What he said."

Garrow rolled his eyes and ignored Kagome's sniggering, "You boys should be out in the fields, what are you doing _lounging _around here?"

"We were just having a riveting conversation about Eragon's pathetic attempts at hunting." Roran said grinning and dodged the rock thrown at his head moments later.

Eragon huffed, "I always bring something back, and I'm a great hunter."

"It's not hunting if you pay for it brother."

This time, he had to jump out of the way to scrape passed the rock.

"Boys, boys!" Garrow called, exasperated, when Roran picked up a pebble of his own and prepared to throw it in his cousin's face. "You're in the presence of a lady."

Roran moved his eyes to give his dad an even stare, dropping the rock, before snorting and rolling his eyes. "Right," his lips twitched, "_she's_ a lady."

Shortly after, he fell backwards waving his arms comically as a pebble smacked his thin nose. His landing was hard and probably hurt more than the rock but his shoulders shook with laughter and the boisterous sound echoed off the barn walls. Soon, the shock wore off and Eragon and Garrow began to chuckle as well, the later of the two patting a steaming Kagome's shoulder.

Finally, sitting up, Roran looked at her with a big smile, "I think you just proved my point."

The innocent girl saw red and her cheeks puffed up as she shot Roran a death glare and prepared another pebble.

Roran yelped and ducked behind the straw bed; somehow still getting smacked in the back of the head. Birds flew up and mice hid away as roaring laughter carried through the morning air.

* * *

It was late in the evening, the full moon pooling light into Carvahall. It was quiet in the small village; a few people scurried on their way or sat down on bar stools in the only pub in Carvahall. Most of the villagers didn't have money to spare on drinking and gambling, but once in a while you would catch the more wild men drowning their sorrows.

Near the outside of the village, there was a loud banging that most would simply ignore. There had been complaints before, but every citizen understood that the job of a blacksmith was to create things and that was neither a quiet nor a dull business.

Sparks flew as hammer hit hot iron and a moment later the hammer was set onto a thick side table.

Kagome reached up to wipe some perspiration off her brow, smoothing her sweaty hair from her eyes and pulling it into a black hair ribbon. Her breathing was heavy and her moist skin lit up as the fire's light flickered on her body.

She quickly picked up a pair of tongs and put the completed metal into the fire again, ignoring the complaints of her sore arms and growling stomach. Minutes passed and she took it from the fire setting it gently to the table and letting it sit for a few minutes before pouring warm water on the blade and watching as hot steam enveloped her leather blacksmith's gloves.

"How's the steel coming?" Horst's voice questioned from behind her and Kagome smiled shyly over her shoulder at him.

"It's practically singing." She replied back happily and a smile swept onto her face despite her current discomfort.

Horst smiled kindly and wrapped her into a hug. After a brief squeeze, he stepped away and peered at the nearly finished ax. A moment later, a glint of metal caught his eye and he took an appreciative look to the sword she'd finished two nights before.

Its hilt was a hand and a half, carved from oak and left bare of accessory; the image of a dog's head was finely carved in and it was polished to a smooth grip.

Horst picked it up and examined it further. It didn't have much of a cross-guard, and what it had was only on the left side, but it was hard to distinguish the change from guard to blade. The metal was darkened, twisted and embedded with swirls of black as it went down to curve snugly toward the blade in a c shape. The blade itself was steel, long and thin, cutting straight down to its point and glittering dangerously. He peered down closer and squinted at the lettering, "Hear my roar and I shall bring your end." Flipping it, he smiled when he saw the crescent moon that was placed just under the rain guard –she did the same on every sword.

"And what is the name of this weapon?"

Kagome blushed, ducking her head and sheepishly scratching the back of her head, "Inu no Taisho; Toga it's a brother sword to Kimi and Joro."

Shaking his head, he looked to her, "Where do you come up with these names?"

She laughed nervously, inching away from the table… "I don't know, it just kind of comes to me."

"Well it's a good name however it comes." He hummed, "You get it from me you know; I was could always find the right name," he smiled peacefully, "even did it with you," Kagome rolled her eyes, having heard this story a million times, but Horst didn't seem to notice, "One day, I held you in my arms and when I heard your heart beating… I just knew. _Kagome_."

A fond smile on her lips, Kagome stood on her tip toes and kissed his cheek lightly, "Yes I do recall hearing that story before. Now, if you don't mind…" taking off her blacksmith's gloves she winked at him, "I have plans."

Horst scoffed playfully, "And what could be more important than spending time with your old man?"

Eyes twinkling, Kagome replied seriously, "Interrogating another old man."

She quickly left –wanting to avoid his questions- hiding a smile and thinking over all the questions she had.

… And she had quite a few questions.

Earlier in the day, she had been listening – err _accidentally overheard_ Eragon and Brom talking about Dragon Riders.

She didn't have any qualms against knowing more about them… in fact, she loved learning about it. They sounded interesting.

She snuck into the tavern area of Carvahall, inwardly boasting because she was 'like a ninja'. She quickly and quietly dropped to the ground and crawled behind the bar.

'_Ha! They're all so drunk they couldn't spot a __**dragon **__if it was in front of the-' _

"K-Kagome? What're yaaa doiiinnn oon theee grounnnn?"

She paused mid-crawl and looked up at the bar stool she hadn't known to be occupied. "Um… nothing?"

"…"

Kagome blushed prettily and narrowed her eyes, puffing her cheeks up, "Albriech what are you doing in a _bar?" _

The flushed cheeks, dizzy look, and the large drink in his hand –almost empty and it looked like it wasn't his first…- said it all, but Albriech didn't seem to think she was observant, "I cammm here lookin for… um… Boulder."

"Yeah right," she snorted, getting up and moving to grab his ear. He briefly attempted to stop her, but it quickly because obvious that he thought her hand was a foot away from where it really was. "Come on kid…" She ignored that he had two years on her and hefted him onto her shoulder, nearly collapsing under the weight.

So you can understand why she was surprised when his bulk was taken almost completely off her shoulders. "Let's get the lad home." Brom's voice sighed and Kagome smile gratefully at him.

Together, the older man –whom appeared to be in good shape for his age- and teenager steered Albriech home.

"I luvya Kagome," Albriech suddenly said, his words slurred and he turned to press a kiss to her forehead. Her nose wrinkled, the smell of alcohol was strong on him, but his breath was even stronger.

"I didn't imagine Albriech being the type to drink." Brom said quietly as the boy hummed and shook his head from side to side.

Kagome winced, "He's not… I'm pretty sure it's just a phase." She hoped that it was, Horst would kill him if he ever found out. Her eyes widened comically and she looked around Albriech –which was hard because he wanted her attention and would move his head every time she ducked around him- and hissed, "Horst is going to _kill _him if he sees this."

"Pfffffft I-I can t-take the old… fart!"

Brom frowned heavily, "…This way."

They took a sharp left – to which they received a loud sound of approval from Albriech and a "can we do it again!?"- and it was only minutes before they reached Brom's little house. They had to go sideways in the door but it worked in the end.

Brom helped him to the bed and rested some covers over his form, ignoring his protests and sternly saying, "Sleep." He turned and walked to Kagome –who seemed to be in shock. "Don't say anything to anyone. You didn't see him tonight. I'll send him home with some story tomorrow."

Kagome frowned, not liking the idea of lying to Horst, but knowing Albriech was better off if she said followed Brom's plan.

"…Fine."

She turned around and started making her way out of Brom's home only for his gravelly voice to reach her ears, "What were you doing near the bar anyway?" he asked suspiciously.

She coughed, turning bright red, "I-I was looking for you."

He looked her up and down –though she didn't notice as she was facing the other direction- and seemed to nod to himself. "Very well, we'll talk tomorrow."

Kagome was more confused than ever but decided that it was in her best interest to go home. Maybe sleep would help her.

* * *

Kagome smiled as she closed the door to her room, she carelessly put her pack on her small bed and turned to leave.

A soft squeak sounded and she jumped whipping around. Another, louder squeak this time and she hesitantly grabbed a candle, lighting it with a tinderbox, she looked around cautiously. It almost sounded like it was coming from… her bed.

The horrid idea of a rat being in her sheets made her shiver. Another squeak rang in her ears and she paled further. It was... _coming from her bag! _

She backed away as it squeaked again and nearly turned tail. She briefly considered running to Horst, but knew that he would only laugh at her.

Her eyes looked around the room as she moved, trying her best to ignore the steady stream of squeaks, and finally found the bucket that she sometimes used to pick berries. Quietly she picked it up and went back over to her bag, slowly and cautiously.

Fighting off a whimper, she gently set the candle on her straw mattress and with trembling fingers reached to tug the sack open. She recoiled after she did, holding the bucket like a weapon.

The squeaks continued.

They were loud now, way too loud to be a mouse or a rat… but what else could it be? Her curiosity was peaked and she hesitantly went back to the sack. The only thing in it was… the stone. She frowned, picking up the stone and looking at her mattress.

…Maybe it had gotten inside?

Her hands vibrated suddenly and the stone jolted as another series of squeaks came, only, now she was sure it was from the stone!

Her eyes went wide with a mixture of fear and wonderment, it rattled and she held it close to her chest as if to stop the jerky movements.

As the squeaks continued, she wondered if maybe, somehow, there was something _living _inside it.

She set it down on the bed, keeping one hand on it and grabbing her candle so it wouldn't fall over with all the vibrations.

A crack appeared in the side and Kagome swallowed tightly, running her fingers over the crack.

Another appeared, then another. Soon webs of cracks were all around the stone and Kagome could only watch in amazement.

It squeaked again, loudly, and a piece in the bottom shifted, then fell off. Kagome's expression was one of disbelief when, amazingly, a little white foot poked out, then went back in, the hole got bigger as –from what she could tell- the little being pushed with both feet and broke the rest of the bottom off. She saw a tail swooshing back and forth and held side down as the creature drug itself out backwards. When it was all the way out, it began to lick itself profusely.

Kagome's mouth hung open as she stared and tried to register the creature in front of her.

She knew what it was that blinked at her; it wrinkled its tiny snout, shook its little head, and buried its face under its front two feet.

Sitting in front of her, a legend in itself, was a baby dragon.

* * *

_**i luv niki4444**_

Sorry it took so long! D: But here it finally is! The third chapter! Haha :D Be free little dragon!

* * *

Responses:

_**KuroNeko**_

Aw! How sweet! I loved the books, and then, when I discovered FFN, I searched it so fast I thought my fingers were gonna fly off! XD I didn't really find any I liked, so when I saw this, I decided, "Hey, guess I'll give this one a try before I give up on it completely!"! I fell in love with your story! I'm so glad I found you Inuyasha/Inheritance Cycle story! I'll be check often for an update!

Chow,  
KuroNeko

_asdfghjkl; you made me so happy! I was like :"DDDDDDDDDDDD the whole time I read that... then I reread it! That could possibly be one of the nicest reviews anyone has ever given me! Thank you so much!_

_**Jayne **  
_

Yes I loved it they are so cute I can't wait to read more and I didn't want her super powerful but she still has her priestess powers right? hopefully those rushakk things don't go after Horst and her family :) till next time oh and I can't wait to see what her dragon will be like too ;)

_! Squeee! Thank you! :D I hope you like this one! And I can't say yet ;P It's a secret, but she could possibly have priestess powers._

_Kagome's dragon = Epic. :P_

_Oh and I don't know if you'll see this but..._

"Could I just politely ask for an update on cursed by talent"

_Literally just got it lol! :D I'll start right away. I'm working on a chap for Deadly Attraction but for some reason I'm getting all stuck D': I might as well since today I feel like writing. xD _

* * *

A big thanks to **Jayne, Black Fox Kenzie, KuroNeko, Kira Kyuu, gincitri, ultima-owner, Mew Sakura the Cyniclon, **and** AnimeAngel240**! Thank you for all the reviews! You're all so awesome! *hugs*

I hope you guys like this! Thank you so much for reading and please leave a review! (No flames though! I am weak of heart!)

I'll make sure to update again soon!

_-Niki_


	5. You Have Wings

Raising children is an uncertain thing; success is reached only after a life of battle and worry.

_-Democritus_

* * *

**_When All Is Forgotten_**

_Chapter 4: You Have Wings_

* * *

"…" Kagome searched desperately for words, but could only watch as the dragon walked about without saying a thing.

So instead, she gawked at it.

It wasn't much bigger than her forearm and its scales shone pure white. It was dignified and noble looking, but also seemed playful and quite childish.

The candlelight flickered off it, giving an almost orange glow.

The dragon stretched like a cat, bringing its front feet out and arching its back. It's wings –several times longer than its body- unfolded and he flapped them several times as if to stretch the muscles; perhaps it was cramped in the stone -_'Egg._' She dully reminded herself. _'It was an egg the whole time.'_

She took another moment to look at its wings; they were ribbed with thin, shining black fingers of bone that extended from the wing's front edge, forming a line of widely spaced talons. Its claws were also black, as were the small spikes that ran down the creature's spine from the base of its head to the tip of its tail.

Its head was roughly triangular and two diminutive white fangs cured down out of its upper jaw.

She couldn't help but notice the unusually large gap where its shoulder met its neck.

It looked at her finally and she noticed that its eyes were onyx; it squeaked cutely and just like that, her heart melted.

Any doubts about the baby dragon disappeared and she cooed, "You're so beautiful aren't you…"

It made a little sound and its neck arched proudly.

"…but I wonder. Are you a boy or a girl?" She was oddly puzzled by it as she watched it gracefully move about her room, looking at different things and squeaking now and then.

Finally, after several minutes of just watching it –it was too adorable to NOT watch- it cautiously approached her, its dark eyes shining and it made an odd noise in the back of its throat. A kind of purr.

"…"

The sound came again and she kneeled in front of it. It came closer to her left side and, reflexively, she reached out with her left hand and gently began to pet the top of its head.

The touch burned her; right from the palm of her hand, up her arm and to the rest of her body.

"OUCH!" She cried, pulling back sharply and managing to bump her head and fall on her bum, but she didn't mind that.

It felt as though her blood was frozen and scorching at the same time, her body spasmed once as tolls of pain jolted through her and she observed the dragon advancing on her through blurry eyes. She did not know if it was the pain or reality and at that moment, she found she didn't care much, but it changed color. The first pink, then red, a flash of blue, green, gold and finally a deep purple; then it became white again before her very eyes.

She laid there for what felt like hours, quivering and trembling. It became a little easier to breath when the agony slowly crawled out of her toes, then faster from her legs, and where it left she felt her body tingle. The pain was longest in her palm, but she didn't wait for it to subside as she sat up on her heels.

She took a moment to alternate between massaging her head and her hand and blinked back the tears that had gathered in the corners of her eyes; wiping the rest from her face with her now tingling hand.

The dragon approached again and Kagome stumbled backwards on her heels, nearly falling once more. "S-Stay back!"

Its eyes looked depressed and it squeaked, taking another, more hesitant step forward. She felt something then, a foreign brush against her conscious that left her totally exposed.

She frowned and her eyebrows wrinkled, choosing to ignore the sensation she asked, "Why did you _do _that?" It didn't look like it wanted to hurt her… so why had it? Why did it burn her?

It notched its head to the side and squeaked again; as if to say 'I don't know what you mean'.

There was another brush, this time stronger and Kagome pushed back. Like a floodgate had opened, she felt a stabbing sorrow and sucked in a sharp breath.

She closed the gate and looked at the dragon again, this time her eyes softened and she cautiously lifted her palm to assess the damage.

The burn had felt much worse than it was. The pain had spread through her body, but the burn was in the middle of her left hand. A silver, diffused spiral oval marking was the only proof of her ordeal.

The dragon took a few more steps and her head snapped up, causing it to immediately halt and look almost nervous as it made a trilling noise.

"…Alright I forgive you."

It seemed to understand her and took the last few steps, nudging her leg with its nose.

There was no further pain, so she hesitantly reached her hand out and touched its soft snout. Its brilliant white scales were silky under her touch as she let her wandering hand glide down its head and over its back.

"You really are beautiful." Just then, a thought occurred to her, "Where am I going to put you?" It might have been selfish, but she didn't want to share her baby dragon.

"What am I going to feed you?" Some kind of meat, she hoped; it would be just her luck to have the only vegetarian dragon to exist.

"_How big will you get?"_

She tried to calm herself down, but she had no idea how to care for a baby dragon. It nudged her again, begging for attention.

Once again, the consciousness reached for hers and she allowed it to. They mingled for a moment and Kagome could feel a ravenous hunger, but something more as well. There was trust and compassion –dare she say love?

She picked it up in her arms and hugged it, careful to avoid its sharp claws and fangs. "I think I know what I'll name you."

* * *

Three weeks had passed since the dragon was 'born'.

She had kept it inside for the first few days, sneaking food away from the table and giving it to the dragon to munch on. It quickly got harder to do so. The dragon ate a lot and –even cutting down her own intake-, she could never hide away enough food to satisfy it fully.

She worried over how skinny it was and knew that she had to find some way to get it more.

Harder still was getting the time that she _needed _to spend with it. The dragon wanted to spend every second with her and –though she would have liked to- she had work and she _still _hadn't told Horst about the dragon.

She tried her best to balance taking care of the dragon and visiting the village children, but it grew to be harder every day. Visiting in itself had at first been challenging because they began ask why she was wearing the pair of dark leather gloves.

In truth, it was because the burn the dragon had left had taken on a silvery sheen and she was afraid someone would see it.

…She told them that she had 'burned herself really bad' and 'she couldn't touch things directly'. Afterwards, she had wrapped her palms in old rags and shoved the gloves back on.

Before the week was over, she had to tell the mothers that she would not be able to see the children for several days.

She used her extra time to scout around the forest for a place for the dragon. She found an area where the forest near her home became the Spine and managed to find a spot in the trees close to a small lake.

It didn't take her long to chop down three trees and create a large, crude platform for the dragon to live on.

She still worried though; the dragon was growing and hyperactive. It could easily fall off the platform and she asked herself what then. She had seen it glide around her room… but its wings could not be strong enough to take that amount of momentum?

Her worries were overruled by the growing need for space and food and, the second week; she brought it to the tree under the cover of darkness.

She stayed with it the night and played with it well into the morning.

She had not considered that –rather than fall off- the dragon would climb higher into the branches and explore the canopy.

When it came time for her to leave, it tried to follow her and she had told it that it had to stay.

Their consciousness's had interlocked and the dragon had shown fear, in return, she tried to convey assurance and remain stern with it. It wouldn't come home with her, no one could see it, and it had to make sure that it didn't hunt outside of the Spine.

She could hear its desperate squeaks far after she had disappeared into the trees and it took everything she had not to return to it; will dull amusement she considered that it was lucky the tree was so far away.

She was thankful that Horst hadn't worried for her; he suspected she had gone to Eragon and she had not corrected him.

Meanwhile, her mental reach had expanded largely. She and the dragon stayed connected whenever they were together and, over time, they could remain together –in mind- while she was in the village.

By the third week, she took a leap and did not visit it for an entire day. She wasn't sure whom it had been harder on, her or the dragon. Neither had slept, preferring instead to remain together in heart and share their emotions.

She had something to do, however, before she could see it.

She had to name it and she had to do it now.

Therefore, she set off in the early morning, trying to tune out the desperate wails of the dragon but refusing to relinquish contact, to the only place she knew of that spoke of dragon lore.

* * *

"Eragon sent you here didn't he?" Brom sighed grumpily, sending her a gruff look, "I already told him all this."

Kagome crossed her arms and leaned against his door, her eyes wide and innocent, "How did the riders name their dragons? Did they just choose anything or…?"

Brom's brow crinkled and he looked suspiciously at the people walking past his house, "…Come here then." He finally said, "Ask your questions inside, where no ears can hear you curiosity."

Her eyes lit up and she straightened, "Really?!"

"..." Brom was not going to repeat himself and he moved to the side when she stepped in and closed the door silently. "Ask again."

"What do elves look like? Are they human looking or do they have fangs and such? – OH! And do they have any special powers? If they're human looking and they don't have any powers – wouldn't that make them hum-"

"You're as bad as the boy; one at a time child." Brom shook his head, trying to remember all her questions, "I've no idea what an elf looks like, but I've heard stories of pointed ears. I've also heard tales of magic surrounding the elves, but I know nothing more. All knowledge surrounding the elves is here say; tales to tell unruly children." He said sternly, raising an eyebrow and nodding to her. "Like yourself. Now ask the question you truly want to ask; like before."

Kagome blushed, "I'm sorry… I got a bit carried away. I shouldn't have expected you to know of such things." Her eyes glowed from the light of the fire and she looked into Brom's eyes, "I'm afraid I've become terribly interested in dragons and the sort. Eragon makes it all sound so exciting! I was wondering about how dragons are named? Or perhaps their names in general… dragons are named right?"

There was a suspicious light in Brom's wise old eye that Kagome was too naïve to catch, but the light wasn't centered on her. It was for Eragon. "Dragon names you say? Well off the top of my head I can remember Galzra, Briam, Beroan, Pinque, Earethe…" he continued rambling names until it was late into the night, she remembered as many as she could, but she was young and things passed through her ears quickly, "…and Saphira."

"Saphira," Kagome murmured, not catching Brom's wince, "What a beautiful name. She must have been a beautiful dragon."

"_She was._" Brom whispered, too quietly for Kagome's ears, it made him feel better to say it; even if none would hear.

What he didn't know, was that she _had _heard it. Ever since the dragon had hatched, her senses had been more… potent. Her sight, hearing, sense of smell, everything was heightened.

So she wondered what he'd meant, but said nothing. It wasn't her place, "…I have to be going; if I stay much longer Horst will be worried."

Brom looked after her and couldn't resist bluntly saying, "You've matured these past two months. You aren't nearly as _daft _as I remember."

Kagome bristled at the jab, though she was unsure of whether it was to be taken a compliment or insult. She took it as the later, "With all due respect old man, I haven't changed at all." She stood, making her way out the door. "You just don't know me as well as you think you do."

Brom stared at the door long after she had gone. He knew that he did not know her well, but he knew her well enough to know that she had changed a great deal.

There was an air around her that hadn't been there a month ago.

* * *

i luv niki4444

WOOHOOO! AN UPDATE! IT'S AN UPDATE!

xD I really hope you guys like this! I've been working since 7 :D But I couldn't get it right so I kept scribbling things out and writing new things. Now that I've FINALLY finished I'm just glad that it's here! I'm sorry I've kept you guys waiting so long! D:

Alright onto things I wanted to tell you about the story...

* * *

**(1) In **the book, Brom tells Eragon that the elves used magic as well as quite a few more things about elves. I wanted him to be more secretive around her because he does not trust her nearly as much as he trusted Eragon; nor did he like her.

He tells her names because he thought she would take it back to Eragon –whom he had suspicions of knowing the whereabouts of a dragon (I think? To me it seemed like Brom knew something was up with Eragon the whole time).

Meanwhile, Brom knows next to nothing about Kagome –but what he does know gives him no cause to think of her being a Rider. The opposite actually. I've created their relationship under the assumption that Brom is fond of her for her kindness, but otherwise views her as naïve, cowardice, and boy crazy. He's in for a surprise. :D

* * *

Responses: Jayne

Thank you thank you thank you :) and I did love this chapter lol the boys around her are hilarious and I can't wait to read more lol

_Haha you're welcome! :) Thank you so much! I tried to combine the personalities from the film with the ones from the book! I wasn't sure how it was working so I'm glad to see you liked it :D _

* * *

A GINORMOUS thank you to Kira Kyuu, Jayne, Julia N SnowMiko, Mew Sakura the Cyniclon, HellCatArtist4Life, and Black Fox Kenzie for leaving reviews! I'm so happy to hear that you guys like it so far and I hope I don't screw this up lol! xD

Thanks for reading! Leave a review tellin me what you thought (No ffffllllaaaaammmmmmeeeeeeesssss though :O Please) and I'll be sure to update again soon! :D

_-Niki_


	6. White Feathers

**_When All Is Forgotten_**

_Chapter 5: White Feathers _

* * *

Kagome hurriedly wrapped some meat in a cloth and went out the door; she walked calmly until she had beyond the tree line. It was then that she bolted.

The other consciousness cheered and she saw an image of it running passed trees and shrubs.

She laughed giddily as it came into sight and as soon as she was close, she wrapped her arms as far around its neck as they would go.

The dragon, at three weeks, now stood at chin height, its scales hard and its teeth ferocious. What had once been a cute little creature was now a beautiful, deadly beast.

The dragon gave a little roar and made a sound at the back of its throat. She knew from experience that the sound meant that it was happy. From their mental connection, she knew that it was overjoyed about her return and would not take separation for so long again.

She eased it by agreeing to the terms, knowing that she could take it no more than the dragon.

It made another pleased sound and she began to stroke the hard, silky scales on its back. "You're just so lovely." She hummed and it was with a start that she felt something more enter her mind.

Just a single word, light and playful, but she knew that it was like solidifying an agreement.

_Kagome._

She couldn't fight off the little gasp that left her throat and her eyes snapped to look into the onyx of the dragon. _Her _dragon.

"Baby?"

"_Kagome. _with the word **her** dragon conveyed annoyance, but there was much more amusement. For the first time, Kagome realized that it wasn't just an animal. She hadn't been raising a stray cat –she'd had plenty of experience in that- or a baby bird.

Dragons were as smart as humans were, maybe more so.

She watched as it flicked its spiked tail and licked its teeth, smiling when she figured out what it meant. "I can't imagine you're very hungry." She said quietly, both scared by her new revelation and curious.

She took out the small amount of meat she'd brought, "I know you just ate." The dragon had been hunting for itself since the first day she'd brought it out, it just preferred when she fed it by hand.

It looked at her and made a sort of choking sound and a deep rumble came from its chest.

Kagome blushed, "A-Are you laughing at me?"

_Kagome._

She held out the strip of meat in her hand and let the dragon take it gently then snap it up. She held out more meat.

It continued like this until the twelve strips were gone, all the while she spoke softly about village life and Horst. Mostly, she spoke of Eragon. She hadn't seen him in nearly a month and it made her… upset.

Even when the traders had nearly two weeks ago, she hadn't been able to find him in the village.

She sighed heavily, "I admit that I've not been thinking of him often since you came around. I just don't have the time…" She confessed.

The dragon swatted its tail and tapped her shoulder with its nose, licking its fangs and teeth.

_Kagome. _It wanted to make her feel better and she did.

She offered a faint smile and ran her fingers over the scales of its snout, "You know, I've been thinking of a name for you."

_Yes? _Its interest perked, it made an inquisitive noise; waves of curiosity flooded her mind and she giggled; finding herself amazed that it had already learned a second word.

Her smile became a serious look and she thought back to the names she had thought of. "… I don't know if you're a boy or a girl so… I picked for each."

She started with the girl names, she was nearly positive the dragon was female. She spoke for several minutes, getting a rejecting _No. _each time before taking a deep breath and saying softly, "Saphira? I know it's the name of a blue dragon but…"

_No. _The dragon conveyed dissatisfaction and no small amount amusement; it made a sound in the back of its throat.

Her lips twitched and she wondered if she could speak to it through her mind as it did to her. _You're a boy aren't you? I should have known troublemaker._

_Yes. _Its chest rumbled signaling it laughed and its emotions sang with pleasure.

The dragon was male.

She grinned, _Well then, how about this one **sir**. Briam._

_No. _The dragon didn't like the name nor any of the other names she had chosen and just when she was about to give up, she remembered.

The name that she had come up with the near moment she had laid eyes on him. The name that she had desperately wanted to ask Brom about, but had been too afraid he'd become suspicious.

She blushed then, looking to her feet. _… Are you Cinder?_

He paused, looking at her with a tilted head. _Cinder. _He finally spoke and the name rolled off his graceful, masculine voice like water. Then, he spoke another new word. _Why? _he sent her his curiosity and from his emotions, she knew that, he had known that Brom had provided the other names, but this was hers.

He wanted to know why she had picked it.

_There's been a cinder in my hot stove since last winter. It's black, but covered in white ash and in places, the black veins show through. Beneath even that, there is a red glow every time I make a fire, as if it has a fire of its own burning inside; a fire that won't ever go out._ She stuttered her last sentence as her dragon's intelligent eyes seemed to bore into her own.

_Yes._

_Yes?_ Kagome asked quietly and a burst of excitement went through her. She did not know if it was hers or her dragons.

_Cinder._

She couldn't help it; she hugged him.

From then on, he was her dragon, her Cinder.

* * *

_**i luv niki4444**_

I FINISHED!

Hurray! I'm squealing xDDD

I've been waiting to write this chapter for... since the story started. :D I knew as soon as I thought about writing an Eragon/Inuyasha crossover what the dragon would look like, be like, and be named. So I thought this moment deserved its own chapter xD

...Plus **NEXT CHAPTER** is hopefully going to be mainly from Eragon's perspective.

Now, to hopefully avoid confusion I made a sort of timeline which you can see here h_t_t_p_s_/_ / i luvniki4444. deviantart art/ Eragon- Timeline -473608799.(Just erase the spaces and underthingabobs) Then you can see the amount of time between Cinder hatching and Saphira hatching. :D

Thank you to Jayce, Julia N SnowMiko, ultima-owner, Kira Kyuu, and AnimeAngel240! Thank you guys so much for reviewing!

This is a quick update cause I have a dentist appointment and I have to go NOW (literally) so thank you guys so much for reading, I hope you liked it and Please review!

_-Niki _


	7. Take You

We are all travelers in the wilderness of this world, and the best we can find in our travels is an honest friend.

_-Robert Louis Stevenson_

* * *

**_When All Is Forgotten _**

_Chapter 6: Take You_

"Regular Talking"

_Mental Talking (Is that the name of it? Idk o_O) _

_'Thinking privately (but not for long :o)'_

* * *

Meanwhile, Eragon had been having troubles of his own.

Almost two weeks before, a dragon had come from the stone he had found in the Spine. It was a brilliant shade of blue and nearly the length of his forearm. It has spread its wings to reveal that they were several times longer than its body size and lined with white bone that lead into thick talons. Its head was roughly triangular and it had two white, sharp looking fangs along with spikes starting from the back of its head to the end of its tail.

He was afraid of it, dragons were dangerous; yet he hadn't been able to resist touching it.

The touch left a scar on his palm, but it also made another connection. A mental connection that scared him more than any other part of the situation did. This whole other _consciousness _touched his, reaching out and pulling his toward it.

He feared that he wouldn't be able to pull back and his mind would just float off, vulnerably.

He ignored his fear and now he was in a situation he hadn't planned. He was taking care of a _dragon _and he hadn't told his _uncle_.

The dragon was bigger now –MUCH bigger- it nearly came up to his hip and it left piles of dung in the forest that steadily grew in size.

What would happen if his uncle decided –for once- to go into the forest behind the farm?

He would know something was up; correction he** knew** something was up. He thought that Eragon was sneaking away with Kagome into the forest.

It was perhaps the only reason that Garrow hadn't asked Roran to follow him.

Therefore, he decided that the least he could do was _actually _visit Kagome.

That led him to this… awkward moment.

"You've been spending a lot of time with her lately, don't you think?" Horst asked pleasantly and Eragon nearly cringed.

"…Well-"

"No shame in it, did you finally realize you love her then?" The older man's eyes crinkled with the beginnings of mischief. He enjoyed how the teenager's cheeks blazed red.

"I-"

"Horst," Kagome stood at the door, looking horrified. "Don't say things like that!"

Eragon turned toward her voice and his breath hitched. _'Oh __**wow**__.' _She looked different from the last time he'd seen her. Her clothes were dirtier, yes, but her hair shined silkier and softer than ever. Her cheeks had a natural flush that hadn't been there before; even the air around her was different, it seemed to shimmer around her.

Her steps were much more confident when she walked toward them and her eyes glowed brighter than a thousand stars.

No wonder Horst had thought he'd confessed to her; there had definitely been a life changing 'I love you' moment while he was gone.

His eyes narrowed at the thought, _'No. It can't be…' _

She stopped in front of him, smiled cutely and said, "Come on, Eragon." She took his hand and, stunned, he could only follow, listening to Horst's quiet laughter behind them.

As soon as they left the house, she dropped his hand – he regretted losing the warmth already- and turned to him with a bright grin on her face, "Eragon! I've missed you!"

He was taken aback when her little arms wrapped around his neck and she brought her body to his.

He flushed; she hadn't hugged him since… Since they were thirteen.

Eragon hesitantly lifted his arms and wrapped them around her waist awkwardly. She didn't seem to notice.

"Where've you been?" She asked quietly and he took a moment to remember that she was innocent, just as innocent as she had been a child.

He pulled away and smiled at her apologetically, "Work. Harvest season is coming up so we're pretty busy."

"That doesn't stop Roran from saying hello." She replied teasingly, winking at him.

Eragon snorted, "_Roran _isn't me."

"Well he didn't come either so you're more alike than you realize." She giggled even as he rolled his eyes and a lump gathered in his throat. Roran was leaving; didn't Kagome know?

Then he froze; something had just occurred to him.

What had happened to the stone he gave her? It was an almost panicking thought and he hastily took her hand, "Kagome, do you still have that stone I found?"

She was stalk still for a moment before she smiled softly, "I sold it."

Eragon wasn't sure whether he should be relieved or upset, "You sold it; to who?"

"One of the merchants that came through, he offered decent coin for it." She replied simply, shrugging. Inside she was actually shaking like a leaf. She wanted to tell him what really happened so badly, but what if he had a bad reaction.

Although, if she couldn't trust him with this, then she couldn't trust anyone. Maybe she should tell him and see how he would respond; good or bad, she knew he wouldn't tell a soul.

"Oh." Eragon said simply and inwardly sighed.

Her mind made up, Kagome smiled at him, "Come on, let's go for a walk."

Eragon perked up at the thought of spending more time with her and he let her lead him into the forest. As minutes passed, they continued to walk and Kagome seemed to be somewhere else entirely.

Finally she spoke up, "Eragon… there's something I need to show you." He raised one eyebrow inquisitively and she awkwardly scratched her arm. "You need to _promise _you won't overreact."

"Alright," he replied and his eyes glinted, "I promise." He caught a flash of something out of the corner of his eye and turned to get a better look. A tree striped of its bark and a few branches.

A light of fear caught his heart and he forgot how to breath, _'The dragon must have come to this side of the Spine!' _Hadn't he specifically asked it not to go too close to the village?

Kagome took a steadying breath and stopped walking, pulling him to a halt as well. Unknown to her, Eragon quickly put his body between her and the tree, praying she wouldn't see it.

She gulped; his curious brown eyes seemed to bore into her soul. "…"

"What's wrong?" Did she see the dragon? Did she think she was telling him something he didn't already know?

If that was the case, should he act surprised by the blue dragon's presence, or should he fess up?

So many questions…

Kagome didn't seem to notice his lack of attention; she was staring into the distance, as if she was listening to something.

She smiled then and grabbed both of his hands. "Eragon I want to introduce you to…" she paused and he felt his mind go numb.

Who?

Could it be his dragon or maybe her boyfriend? His lip nearly curled at the later thought.

"Cinder." She finished quietly, "He's my… friend."

Wait a second, what? 'Friend' confused him. Dragon he could take, boyfriend… maybe, but _friend_?

…That was unknown territory.

'_Boyfriend.' _Eragon decided and he wanted to slap himself. He should have told her how he felt! Now what chance did he have?

She took a deep breath and called the boy 'Cinder'; her voice was soft and angelic even though she'd belted it out.

A moment later, Eragon was stock still with his mouth agape and his hands hanging limply at his sides.

'_C-Cinder is…' _

He couldn't believe his eyes and fear began to rise inside. "D-Dragon." He whispered, flabbergasted.

Kagome worried her lip and looked at him from under full lashes, "Please don't freak out." Came her cry and she held her hands up as if to shield the ginormous creature.

Eragon didn't say a word. The massive dragon stood almost as tall as the girl standing protectively in front of it did and it was twice the size in length. He could imagine all the things it could do with those gigantic white fangs. The foot long talons; he didn't even want to think about it.

He took a step back and the unknown dragon made a sound, he stopped short. It was deeper, but the same sound the blue dragon made. This white dragon was laughing at him.

Eragon looked back and forth from the girl who stood in front of him desperately and the dragon laughing.

"You…"

Kagome flinched, "Listen to me Eragon, please!" She was very clearly near tears and Eragon felt a pull to his heart. "I lied about selling that stone. It was an EGG and Cinder hatched from it! I-I raised him, he's **good**." _'Just like the blue dragon.' _"I love him Eragon, please don't tell anyone. _Please._"

Eragon was afraid. He raised the blue dragon, it was only up to his hip and –should it ever get as large as this white one- he knew it would never hurt him.

He knew nothing about this second dragon and that terrified him. He gulped and his eyes went back to her, the girl that he knew he was undoubtedly in love with.

Something clicked in his mind then, looking into her watery blue eyes. He could not say anything.

If he did, she would never forgive him, just as he would never forgive her if she ran screaming to the villagers about the blue dragon.

"Alright, I won't tell." He said finality in his voice. He was unsure of his decision and he hoped that he wouldn't regret it.

He flinched as she tackled him in a fierce hug, "Thank you Eragon," she whispered, "you're my best friend."

Eragon suddenly felt guilty and quickly, without really meaning to, blurted out, "I have a dragon too."

Kagome's mouth flew open and she sputtered, "W-What?" another moment passed and before Eragon could reply, she recovered. "You have a dragon."

"It isn't mine." Eragon replied awkwardly, suddenly embarrassed to have said anything. "I'm just raising it."

Kagome was too enthralled to care about the difference and the dragon made its laughing noise again, "Is she as pretty as Cinder? What's her name?"

"It doesn't have a name," Eragon said back, "and I don't think it's a girl." It could have been for all he knew.

Kagome hummed, clearly off in her own fantasyland and it made Eragon worried, "Oh they'll have the most wonderful babies…"

Eragon nearly groaned despite himself. Garrow warned him about this stage of a woman's life, Eragon just hadn't considered _Kagome _might go through it.

"I want to meet her."

He looked at her, no longer crying, but instead happy and he asked himself, _'How could I ever deny her?' _

"Alright."

* * *

Kagome was nearly as awestruck by the blue dragon as Eragon had been by hers.

"She's the loveliest shade of blue." She whispered and held out her hand to the dragon –which came up to just above her hip. It was nearly half the size of the white dragon.

A young mind reached out and touched hers and she nearly gasped, but allowed it to enter. Seconds later, she knew that the blue dragon was curious.

_I'm Kagome, Eragon's friend. _She said to it gentlyand it blinked at her with those wide blue eyes.

Kagome reached toward it carefully and touched the scales of its snout and the dragon made a happy sound. It was higher and less rough, but sounded similar to Cinder's 'purr'.

"It likes you," Eragon said, awestruck, "how did you do that?"

"Do what?" Kagome's voice was low and quiet and she pressed her face into the dragon's neck. Her lips twitched; if Cinder had come with, he would have been jealous.

'_Maybe, but he isn't really the type to get jealous without cause.' _She thought idly and noticed that the dragon was looking to Eragon almost hopefully.

It wanted him to join them, how cute!

Nearly squealing, Kagome quickly let go of the dragon and grabbed Eragon before he could get away.

Together, they played with the dragon for hours, hours filled with laughs and love.

Kagome found herself filled with contentment watching Eragon play as he had always done when they were children. He hadn't been so happy in a long time. He looked up from where he sat on the blue dragon. Kagome had never thought of sitting between the spikes as he was.

A suddenly sad look passed his features and he slid off and walked to her.

Kagome frowned, curiosity building inside her. "Eragon what is it-"

Warm, soft lips cut her off and her eyes widened in shock, she let out a little gasp.

Eragon didn't seem to notice, his kiss was gentle and hesitant, but passionate all the same. It said 'I've been waiting to do this' and Kagome melted into it, into him.

Unfortunately, when she just had her bearings enough to kiss him back Eragon had already pulled away and Kagome had to fight to keep her legs beneath her.

Eragon looked away and there was a fierce blush staining his cheeks. Kagome wouldn't help but be lost in how adorable he looked at that moment. "I-I've got to go, uncle is probably worried."

He was walking away then and Kagome, caught up in the tingling of her lips and the butterflies in her stomach, could only watch him go.

She wobbled and held onto the nearest tree to steady herself. Her mind was jumbled with whys, whats, and hows, but also clearer than it had ever been.

The boy she was infatuated with had just kissed her.

She suddenly felt faint.

* * *

**_i luv niki4444_**

HEY GUYS!

IT'S HERE! I'm gonna scream! x"DD I'm so happy!

xD I need to go like now because I'm supposed to help my dad but I just wanted to respond to some things quickkk...

(1) Story Updates: For this specific story, updates will be... scattered but I'm going to have all the other stories I plan to update in a list which I'll put on my profile later today. Like the one I have right now.

When All Is Forgotten  
Eremento No Stigma  
Forevermore  
Trapped Starlight  
Just a Touch of Magic  
New Naruto/Inuyasha Crossover -Also Good Intentions Revision  
And Scarlet Knight.

I just finished When All Is Forgotten so I'll take it off my list, but the next update could come before or after any of the others. I'm so into writing it right now that I don't even know if I can work on anything else x"D

**(2)****_kakashixangela_** asked me for a sample drawing of Cinder. I DO have one but I don't have a camera to get it on my computer. I wanted to know if anyone else wanted to see it as well. xD Once I get it on my computer I'll update it to my deviantart account.

Thank you to **Mew Sakura the Cyniclon**,** Julia N SnowMiko**,** Kira Kyuu**,** ultima-owner**,** Jayce**,** kakashixangela**, and **Valleygoat! **Thank you guys so much for reviewing! I'm squeaking with happiness over here xD

I really hope you guys like it annnnnndddd please leave a review. :D Remember every time you review, Cinder grows four inches; let's make us a big dragon!

_-Niki_


	8. Fire in the Forest

Eventually we all have to accept full and total responsibility for our actions, everything we have done, and have not done.

__\- Hubert Selby Jr., Requiem for a Dream __

* * *

**_When All Is Forgotten_**

_Chapter 7: Fire in the Forest_

* * *

Time passed quickly, a day, a week, two more.

Kagome was in a fog, going about her life without really feeling any of it. She found herself lost in a maze of her own creation; billions of thoughts both racing and sluggish crossed her mind.

It was because of this that she sat inside Brom's home, questioning him and pretending she could not see his frustration.

"How big did they get?" Kagome chimed breathlessly and her face contorted with awe.

As a way of answer, Brom sat back in his creaky old chair and looked at her calmly over his hooked nose, "They grew with age, and I'd imagine that a dragon would be the size of Alagaësia itself if it was old enough."

The teenager sucked in a shocked breath and she leaned forward eagerly, "Really, is that possible?"

The storyteller in him kicked in and he leaned forward as well, a hint of a smile touching his lips, "The old ones believed that there is a large island Far East of Alagaësia. Legend says that it's as large as the Spine in expanse and that it's really a dragon that became so old that he fell asleep whilst exploring the vast seas."

"Tell me more." Kagome murmured quietly and her foot began to thump excitedly.

Brom hummed, "It was long before the contract between two legged creatures and dragons; far before the times of hunting and enemies as well. It is told that a man of elven face came to Alagaësia from the far away plains, sorrowful and disheartened. He wept and screamed to the skies, begging for the mercy of an ended life, but the gods ignored his requests. One day the first dragon, a wise elder, noticed his pleas and he sent his youngest hatchling to meet with him and discover what made him so sad.

"It was too young to be afraid, but too old to be naïve and so it approached his tree and asked of his plight. He got no answer; the elf-faced man continued his cries of mercy and the dragon, young but kind, sat beside him. Day after day, the dragon approached the elf and day after day, he was ignored, but he was not deterred. Months passed and the dragon stopped asking, but simply sat beside him and as time passed, the elf's cries became less frequent. He was still sad, but the elf found peace near the beast and the beast near him.

"After years of sitting and peace, the elf stood and the dragon with him. The two stretched their weary limbs and began an adventure across Alagaësia. He was granted a place between the beast's shoulder blades and together they flew; across the skies, the seas, and anywhere else they could manage to place themselves. The dragon was most abnormal, capable of breathing underwater, and was considered strange."

Kagome cleared her throat, interrupting him and Brom let out an uneasy snort, "What is it?"

"Why was it abnormal?"

He sighed, "Do you want to hear the tale or ask more questions and sidetrack me?"

Her eyes narrowing, cheeks puffing, and face blushing, Kagome huffed, "If I don't _understand _it, what use is it to hear it?

"A right point you have," Brom's lips twitched, "There were many types of dragons in the old times; fire breathing dragons, water dragons, ice dragons, dragons that could breathe nothing. They were referred to as Southern Dragons; the abnormal dragons, the Northern Dragons were skeptics. They were especially rare and incredibly powerful; dragons that could breathe more than one element."

"Alright you can continue." Kagome replied proudly and Brom sent her an annoyed look.

"Where was I- ah yes. As abnormal as it was, the dragon found a mate and soon young hatchlings littered the sky. The elf was happy and so was his dragon.

"However, time changes everything." Brom sighed, "Elves and dragons began their eternal fight and after hundreds of years of conflict, the dragon's mate and many of his children were killed. He fell into deep sorrow and disappeared into the eastern skies with his Rider."

He sat back heavily in his chair and his eyes dimmed, "As the story goes, the loss of the dragon family became a deep scar in Dragon history and the dragons slaughtered all who had been a part of it." He closed his eyes, "As for the dragon, he flew until he could fly no longer and crashed into the sea. The Rider worried for his dragon's safety and placed powerful magic over him to protect him.

"Covered by miles of dirt, its mountains are spikes, its scales buried deep under soil and vegetation to walk upon as ground. Its head fell so deeply under water that none could swim or dive far enough to reach it."

"How sad," Kagome murmured, "and what of its Rider?"

Brom blinked his eyes open and she caught a hint of curiosity in his eyes, "Its Rider? He settled on the dragon's shoulders, as he had always done, and hoped that his friend would one day awaken."

Kagome let out a long breath and her eyebrows furrowed, "Why do such bad things have to happen?"

To Brom's surprise, she actually seemed to mean her words. She honestly didn't appear to understand why, "They happen for no particular reason; perhaps a creature mad with greed, power, or selfish natures. Maybe a naïve hope for something better rather than an appreciation for what one already has." He shrugged, "Regardless of the reason, the acts of crime will always be just that."

Kagome leaned back in her chair and gasped only moments later as her chair tipped and she fell backwards in a mess of limps. She managed to smash her head into the little bookshelf and groaned when one fell atop her head.

Brom cursed and fussed, helping her up and scolding her all the while.

Kagome could only apologize profusely as she tried to help him, but her 'help' only managed to send another torrent of books down on them.

Brom glared at her and Kagome gulped, "I-I'll just g-go then…"

She ran out quickly, non-the-wiser to the little book that had slipped into her pack in the commotion.

* * *

_Haven't you talked to the boy yet? _Cinder's cheerful voice chimed from her mind and Kagome shrugged nervously.

_Not really. _She hadn't seen Eragon since that unexpected kiss over three weeks ago. Of course, she hadn't just been sitting around the entire time. Horst kept her busy with jobs and on the time she found herself with nothing to do, she taught Cinder words. After a week, he spoke in complete sentences; now the dragon knew more than she did.

She smiled slightly, running her hands up and down his smooth scales and Cinder rumbled beneath her. _You should. _

_I don't want to be the first to approach… I- I don't want to seem desperate or anything… _

Cinder rolled his eyes _You won't scare him off._

_I'm not taking relationship advice from a baby dragon. _She bristled and moved to jump off him, at the last second her foot slipped and she tumbled down.

Pain coursed through her, coming from the middle of her back and for a moment, something flashed before her eyes. Another time, another –worse pain.

Then it was gone and she sat up, rubbing her back, and Cinder's fear made itself known. _I'm fine… _

_I know kid. _He didn't though, Kagome could feel his worry. Had he felt the odd, terrible pain?

She groaned loudly, "Great, look at this mess!" Everything in her bag had dumped out onto the ground!

Grumbling, she leaned down and scooped it all up, muttering "Huh?" when she found something she didn't recognize. It was a little black journal.

She knew the basic letters - though Horst had struggled to teach her- but she hadn't made reading a common practice.

She cautiously opened the book and read over the first words curiously, "S-k-ö-l-ir v-e-n… meaning sh-i-e-l-d f-r-o-m s-i-gh-t." The next was Brisingr, a word traslated to fire.

_What…? _She frowned, _Skölir Ven. What language is that and why would someone need to know it? _

_Kagome. _Cinder interrupted and she could feel his dread; a shock went through them both. _Something is wrong. _

Only second, later, a foreign mind forced its way into theirs.

It was fast and left their senses tingling, stripping away their defenses as it went; causing an explosion of pain and cold fear washed over them both and the mind-voice shrieked.

_RUN LITTLE ONE! BETRAYER! OATHS SHATTERED! SOULS DESTROYED! BLOOD EVERYWHERE! RUN RUN RUN RUN!_

Cinder let out a mighty roar and began to yell as well, _MURDERS! EGGS CRUSHED! FIRE! ENEMIES! DEATH! _

_Cinder stop! _Kagome called, tears had gathered in her eyes as she felt the overwhelming pain of two dragons –for that foreign mind could be nothing else- and she pressed her palms over her ears desperately.

It was no use, for the voices were inside her mind and the roaring outside was too much to handle. A moment later, she felt something grab onto her back and gravity defied her. She was helpless to stop the intrusion, instead hanging somewhat limply from her dragon's jaws. _Cinder please!_

_Must protect Kichōna ai. Kōzan. Kōzan. Kōzan. _

His mind had calmed enough that she dared to open her eyes and, looking at the ground, she caught sight of two hooded figures, running toward Eragon's farm. It chilled her bones and she prayed they wouldn't look up.

Terrified, confused, and very upset she clenched her jaw and closed her eyes against the rough wind that hit her face. _SKÖLIR VEN__!_

White light shone brightly through the glove on her hand and her vision blurred as an unparalleled exhaustion coursed through her body. A moment later, any trace of a flying girl and sparkling white scales had disappeared into the wind.

A hooded stranger lifted his head and sniffed.

* * *

I luv niki4444

xD THINGS ARE STARTING TO HAPPEN!

Holy cow, I'm so excited about this...

Now that my brief writers block has passed I know exactly what I'm gonna doooooo :D SO ASDFGHJKL;!

Anyway... x"D

My internet is (AGAIN) spotty so I don't have much time for writing a complete author's note so I just wanted to say...

* * *

**1)** Cinder is starting to connect extremely deeply with Kagome's mind -deeper than even she can reach. Because of this, he's able (to very limited extent) to access japanese words as she did when naming the swords I had her craft earlier on in the story.

Now, the words he spoke in this chapter were...

_Kichōna = _Precious

_ai = _love

_Kōzan =_Mine

From now one, Cinder will refer to her as one or a mixture of these words. My main reason for doing this is because in Eragon, Saphira used words like 'little one' and 'child'. While endearing, Saphira has (hopefully) a completely different personality from Cinder and he'll want to use terms that are more affectionate and personal. I also have another reason but as it directly connects with the future of this plotline... xD hehehe (evilly walks away whistling).

**2) **MAGIC! Okay, so I know magic may seem a little early on to have started learning, but HEY this is still Kagome we're talking about. Even deaged and having forgot her past, she's used her own brand of magic before. To me it seems logical that calling on magic would be more like calling on an old friend than it being completely foreign.

Anyway! THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH FOR REVIEWING SO MUCH! :"D The amount of views and fa

* * *

vs and reviews... I'm freaking out! I'M SO HAPPY YOU GUYS LIKE IT SO MUCH!

_-Niki _


	9. Away

Old friends pass away, new friend appear. It is just like the days. An old day passes, a new day arrives. The important thing is to make it meaningful: a meaningful friend - or a meaningful day.

_\- Dalai Lama_

**_When All Is Forgotten _**

_Chapter 8: Away_

* * *

Horst was anxious; there could be no denying that.

Four days ago, Kagome disappeared into the wind; only a day later Eragon and Garrow were found fatally injured just outside Carvahall.

Neither had woken yet, but Horst couldn't help but consider all the possibilities. His adopted daughter spent most of her time at Garrow's farm with Eragon. Destroyed farm, nearly dead owners of said farm, and a missing love-struck girl; his mind could easily put together the pieces.

So why wasn't Kagome with Eragon? Why hadn't they found her anywhere on the demolished property?

None of his questions would find answers until someone woke up.

Someone knocked on his door and Elain gently squeezed his hand before standing and opening it. He was both anxious and relieved to see that it was Eragon, leaning heavily on Gertrude –the town healer- and looking miserable.

The wounds to Eragon were different from Garrow's, but nearly as deadly. His legs were stripped of skin. Gertrude wrapped him firmly in bandages, but nothing had been done for his pain; it was obvious on his face.

"Please, come in." Elain replied quickly and quietly. They stepped over the threshold and Eragon stumbled, Gertrude squeezed him gently.

Elain gave him a sad, anxious smile, but addressed Gertrude, "I was just about to send for you. He isn't doing well. You should see him right away."

"Elain, you'll have to help Eragon up the stairs." Gertrude replied swiftly and hurried but them two at a time.

Elain wrapped an arm around Eragon's shoulders, but he stepped away slightly. "That's okay, I can do it myself."

Her face was soft as she gently said, "Are you sure?" He nodded and she pursed her lips together doubtfully. "Well… as soon as you're done came into the kitchen, I've got some pie I think you'll like."

She moved back to where Horst stood and took his arm, silently telling him not to bother the boy… for now.

* * *

Eragon deftly moved to a corner and sank to the floor. _This isn't the way things are supposed to be! _

His uncle was strict and at times harsh, but he was always there when his family needed him. Now that the roles were reversed, however, Eragon could do nothing and it _hurt_.

He should have been there, at the farm, instead of high in the mountains where he could do nothing.

Because of him… no – because of _Saphira _his uncle lay on a bed piled high with blankets, the skin of his face shrunken and sweat covering his brow. He was still and breathed shallowly.

Strips of cloth covered Garrow's many wounds and as they were changed, Eragon could see that the burns hadn't begun to heal.

He felt an arm wrap around him comfortingly, but he neither needed it nor wanted it. When he didn't respond, he saw that it had been Katrina and she left the room silently.

Sometime later, he saw Horst come in and speak to Gertrude in a low voice, and then he approached where he sat. "Come on. You need to get out of here." Before he had a chance to protest, Horst dragged him to his feet and led him out the door

"I want to stay." He complained.

"You need a break and some fresh air," Horst sighed as he caught sight of his expression and quietly added, "Don't worry, you can go back soon enough."

Eragon grudgingly allowed the smith to help him downstairs and to the kitchen where delicious smells filled the air.

Albriech and Baldor were there, talking with their mother as she kneaded bread. Kagome, however, was nowhere to be seen.

His heart leaped in his chest as he heard Albriech worriedly saying her name to his mother, only to stop as the boy noticed him. A feeling of dread started washed over him and a lump gathered in his throat.

"Here, sit down," Horst replied softly and offered him a chair.

Eragon sank in it, grateful, but also cautious. "Thank you." His hands were shaking so he clasped them in his lap tightly. A plate was placed in front of him, but he wasn't hungry; still, for courtesies sake, he took a bite.

"I know this isn't the right time," Horst said slowly and Eragon paused, "and I know it's insensitive, but I need to know… what happened."

"I don't really remember."

"Eragon," Horst started and leaned forward, "I was one of the people who went to your farm. Your house didn't just fall apart – it was torn apart. Tracks of a massive beast surrounded it; something the like of which I've never seen or heard of. Others saw them too. If there's a monster lurking around we have to know. You're the only one who can tell us."

Eragon hesitated, knowing he had to lie, "When I left Carvahall days ago, there were… strangers in the town asking about a stone like the one I found." He gestured to Horst, "You talked to me about them so I hurried home." All eyes were upon him, "Nothing happened that night, but the next morning we were attacked. I-I had gone out hunting and when I came back the house was- well you saw it." He swallowed hard. "I-I dug through the remains until I found Garrow and I tried my best to bring him to the village, but…"

"You collapsed." Elain kindly replied, patting his shoulder comfortingly and he nodded solemnly.

"What about Kagome," Albriech murmured quietly, causing his head to snap back up, "what happened to her?"

"I don't know what you mean." Eragon shook his head and his heart leapt in his chest, "She wasn't at the farm."

Tears gathered in Horst's eyes and he quickly covered his face with his hands, "Then where is she?" he whispered.

* * *

Water dripped noisily in the darkness, filling the peaceful cavern with twinkling sound.

White snow flashed off piles of snow that gathered near the cavern edge; it was beautiful, yet so unforgiving. If a normal person had been stranded in this cavern, they would have died by the frozen air or –if not the air- starvation.

The forest outside seemed desolate and many trees had been broken off or stripped of limbs.

Inside the cavern, there was a spacious area, so big perhaps, that one would speculate whether it was made by nature or man.

It was inside this cavern, so dull yet so interesting, that the blinding glow of the snow glinted off white scales. A large beast was curled up and breathing heavily.

* * *

Eragon stood groggily from the bed Elain had lent him. He felt a growing dread in his stomach and he took a shaky step forward, wincing, for her was still not able to walk as he should.

He began to slowly make his way from the room and froze when he noticed the dim candlelight coming from Garrow's room.

His dread became a pit and he moved forward again, this time his legs moving without his insentive. He opened the adjacent door, unready for what he knew he would face.

There, as if to mock him, his fear were met and he dimly felt his knees touch the ground. Noticed the people who had silently gathered, look back at him with pity he didn't want.

Garrow's chest no longer rose and fell. Gertrude silently lifted one of the blankets with a shaky hand and covered his face with it.

"The fever won out." She said gruffly, quietly and Eragon felt as though water had been poured into his ears.

Then, without another word, he stood and went back to his room to mourn.

* * *

Kagome woke up to the sound of heavy panting; she woke up slowly and opened her eyes.

Wherever she was, the roof was darkened white and thick black streaks ran across it in a beautiful pattern. It was low hanging so if she tried to sit up, her head would smack against it.

She looked at it curiously, for it seemed familiar, and gently touched the white; suddenly knowing what it was before she touched the softness that could only be feathers.

Her lips twitched and smile smiled faintly, _Cinder what are you- _Her eyes widened as she remembered what occurred before she blacked out. She felt a strange _pull _after she spoke the words she had seen in the book; the rest was a blur. She remembered Cinder flying here and smacking her head on the rough ground as he set her down, but nothing else. _How long have I been out? _

_Three days. _He hummed back and his wing lifted, exposing her to the cold air.

She shivered; "So long?" she muttered to herself, "Horst must be going nuts."

_Why did you take me here? _She asked and began looking around the semi-large cave.

Cinder shuffled to the cave entrance and laid down, blocking it. _There's danger in Carvahall. _

His words echoed through her thoughts and she thought about it for a minute, feeling the waves of fear from Cinder and her own desperate need to see Horst. _Horst is there. Albriech and Bolder are there. _

_You are not. _

A feeling of anger started to rage in her heart, _If you want to protect me _she grumbled, _start by protecting my family. _

The two, dragon and Rider, glared at each other for one terrifying moment, the later of the two spoke aloud, withdrawing her mind from his, "Bring me back… or I'll walk back." She stood and began to walk toward him; looking for a way around.

Her lips pursed into a thin line when she saw none.

Cinder, in turn, frowned heavily and tried to connect with her consciousness. He was surprised when he found himself blocked.

"Cinder; you** will **let me out." She grumbled, sending him an annoyed look when he didn't move to respond. "Please?"

With no way to speak to her, he simply stayed put.

After a long sigh of exasperation, she softened, "Look Cinder, I know you want to protect me, but I _need _to protect them. You are a dragon! If something attacks us… w-well you can just eat them!" She blushed lightly and fiddled with the ripped hem of her shirt. "Please, _please _take me back to Carvahall."

She reached out her consciousness tentatively and within moments, she was flooded with his feelings, pain, anger, guilt, love. _I'll take you back. _

_Thank you, _her nose touched his and she heard his purr. _I don't know what I would do without you as my friend. _

He moved aside and she stepped out of the cave, _So how are we going to do this? _She wondered and found herself oddly excited. Now that she was expecting it, she felt a lot more comfortable with the idea of flying.

_I'll scoop you up with my talons. _He answered softly and he took off into the sky to get a start.

"This should be rough." Kagome muttered, cringing only slightly, a flash of black to her right gave her pause and she quickly knelt down, brushing the snow off.

Her eyes widened and she picked it up and held it to her chest, hesitantly wrapping it under her shirt, a moment later she heard her dragon's wings coming closer and closer.

His talons wrapped around her legs and her waist, holding her gently yet firmly and she closed her eyes.

* * *

"Maybe…" Horst paused for a long moment and took a drawn out breath, "but this doesn't explain Kagome's disappearance. I've been thinking about what Eragon said and I'm not sure he told us everything."

Eragon cringed and quickly began to make his way out of Horst's house, pausing only long enough to close the door silently. He headed down the street away, thankful that the cold morning kept many within their houses.

He knew now what he didn't before; he had to go. There were too many people asking too many questions, eventually he would mess up his story.

He stopped his stride in front of Gedric's tanning vats –which were placed near the outskirts of Carvahall- and cringed when the smell met his nose. Still, he kept moving along until he was inside the shack stalked with cured hides and he swiftly cut down six from the rows of skins hanging.

The guilt from the act struck him hard, but he tried to remind himself that, one day, he would pay both Gedric and Horst back.

He rolled up the copious leather and took it to a large group of trees away from the village; then wedged it between the heavy branches of a tree.

_Alright, now that that's done, food is the next biggest problem. _He didn't actually need it, after all Saphira could hunt for him, but he considered it better to have something should problems arise.

Besides, if he planned to steal, it might as well be from Sloan. He snuck up to Sloan's house and broke the thin chain barring the side door; he knew the front had tighter security whilst Sloan was out. The rooms inside were dark, but not bad enough that Eragon couldn't see. He spied piles of meat wrapped in hard, dry cloth and packed as much as he could inside his shirt.

He stumbled back outside, feeling the cold air stick to his legs once more and walked back to where he'd hidden the leather, fumbling the whole way in an attempt to keep his stolen goods hidden. He glanced over his shoulder before he stepped into the cusp of trees and, seeing no one, slipped through the trees until he reached the tree he'd placed the leather in.

For a moment, his mind went black, and then he registered the sight before him. _It's gone. _

"Going somewhere?"

He froze for a moment then slowly turned around, "Y-You? Why are you following me?"

Brom stared back at him and took a few steps forward, "I didn't follow you, I've been waiting here for you."

Eragon's eyes trailed down to the leather clutched tightly between wrinkled hands.

"Give it back."

"Why?" Brom scoffed and sharply scowled, "So you can run off before Garrow is even buried?"

"It has nothing to do with you." Eragon countered and made a grab, Brom moved away with a surprising amount of speed.

"Where are you going?"

Eragon lunged for the hides again and this time Brom did nothing to stop him.

"I hope you have enough meat to feed your dragon."

He froze, "What are you talking about?"

Brom crossed his arms, shifting the staff he held by doing so, "Don't take me for a fool; I know where that mark on your hand, the gedwey ignasia, the shining palm, comes from. You touched a dragon hatchling and you came to me asking questions, telling that girl to ask me questions, because the riders live once more."

Eragon dropped the meat and leather, swallowing against the lump in his throat, _Its happened… I need to get out of here. I can't move faster than him with my legs like this… but… Saphira! _

A number of painful moments passed and he waited with baited breath, finally she answered, _Yes_

_We have been discovered, I need you! _He sent her a picture of his location and she took off immediately. Now he had to stall Brom. "How did you figure it out?" he asked coldly.

Brom stared passed him and his lips moved, as if talking to someone else. Then, their eyes locked and the old man said, "There were clues and hints everywhere. A person only needed the knowledge to see them; I have that knowledge. Tell me, how is your dragon?"

"She is fine." Eragon replied suspiciously, "We weren't at the farm when the strangers came."

"Ah, your legs. You were flying?"

_How did he know? What if the strangers convinced him to do this? Maybe they want him to discover where I'm going so they can ambush us. And where is Saphira? _He reached out with his mind and found her circling the sky overhead, _Come._

_No, I will watch for a time._

_Why? _

_Because of the slaughter at Doru Araeba. _She replied back.

_What? _

Brom leaned against a tree with a slight smile, "I spoke with her. She has agreed to stay above us while we settle our differences. As you can see, you have no choice but to answer my questions. Now tell me, where are you going?"

Eragon put a hand on his temple, bewildered, _How could Brom speak with Saphira? _The back of his head throbbed and ideas whirled through his mind, but he could only think to tell the old man something, anything! "I was going to find a safe place to stay while I heal."

"And after that?"

The question couldn't just be ignored. The pain in his head grew and it became impossible to think clearly. All he wanted to do was tell someone about the events that had happened to him the past few months, it tore at him that his secret had caused Garrow's death. He gave up spoke, his voice shaking as he did so, and "I was going to hunt down the strangers and kill them."

"Quite a task for someone so young," Brom replied casually, as if Eragon had proposed the most obvious and suitable thing to do. "Certainly a worthy endeavor and one you are fit to carry out, yet it strikes me that help would not be unwelcome." He reached behind a bush and pulled out a large pack. His tone became gruff, "Anyway, I'm not going to stay behind while some stripling gets to run around with a dragon."

Eragon didn't know if he could trust Brom, but his head hurt terribly and Saphira was listening to him. So he quickly decided the most logical thing to do was simply to go along with it. "Fine, but," he paused and let out an agitated noise, "we need to find Kagome first. She went missing the same day I did."

Brom snorted, "I'm highly aware," he grouchily replied, "I've heard nothing but your farm's demise and that girl's mischief for days." He hefted the pack over his shoulder, lightly clinking against the sword hanging at his waist as he did so. "Eragon, do you really think it's wise to bring a child like that with us? She'll only hinder our search."

Eragon glared back at him, "The strangers could come back-"

"And we'll naught bring the entire village will us." Brom snapped back gruffly, "They'll be fine."

"Kagome's different." Eragon muttered, huffing and when Brom raised a single, thick eyebrow at him, he quietly replied, "I found two eggs in the Spine; two eggs… two riders."

Brom's sharp eyes widened noticeably after the words sunk in and he said, breathlessly, "A rider… that kid? Two riders?"

Eragon nodded and his anger disappeared, "Yeah, hers hatched a few weeks before Saphira so he's big enough to fly away, but I'm still worried. You saw what the strangers did to my house right. And with Kagome missing…"

"That is something to worry about." Brom sighed, but a moment later, their worries were eased.

"ERAGON!" Hearing his name, Eragon looked up and through the trees saw Kagome, running toward them and dodging trees as she moved. She had tears in her eyes as she latched onto him, not realizing he was injured. "W-What happened to the farm? Is Garrow okay? Are _you _okay?"

She started to pull away and he stopped her by wrapping her in his arms tightly, "Kagome," his eyes closed and he was finally able to relax a little, by the gods he had been worried. "Are you alright?"

"Meow!"

He pulled away, surprised, and she smiled sheepishly, tears still latched onto her rosy cheeks, "I'm fine." She held up a little black fur ball with a bluish white star on its forehead and two tails that looked as though they had been dipped in the same color.

In her arms was a small, skinny kitten.

"He's fine too."

* * *

**_i luv niki4444_**

Heeeeeeerrrrrrreeeeeeee comes the chapter! DU DU DU DU!

Look at how long it took to update _ Wow. It's been such a busy month that I can't even begin to explain.

I'm so sorry it's taken so long for this to be written, I'm afraid I got stuck... many many times when Brom confronted Eragon.

I finally decided I didn't want to change the scene (for the most part) so I also need to apologize for how close this is to the book! I actually copied most of the words from the book - DISCLAIMER: THESE ARE NOT MINE- because of this.

In future chapters, such a thing will be extremely rare (especially because of what I have planned) and I'm honestly very upset with this chapter. :/

Still, the show must go on! I can already tell the next one will be a challenge, but it's one that I'll enjoy! xD

Thank you guys so much for reviewing and following and FAVORITING! :D I'm so excited to write the next chapter that it HURTS (BECAUSE I REALLY NEED TO WORK ON GOLDEN SCROLLS).

***** NOTE: ****THE KITTEN: **This kitten was originally a black kitten with white spots on its tail, paws, and forehead. His name was Sindile which is African for survivor. Almost two weeks ago, my brother ran him over with his car. He was my favorite of our 5 kittens and he was the smallest so we wondered if he'd survive winter. That's why I decided to incorporate him into this story (Well I needed a two tailed cat as well) I want him to be able to live on, even if it's in a story. ^_^

Love you Sindile! See you in the next chapter :)

\- Niki


	10. When Morning Comes

There's always another storm. It's the way the world works. Snowstorms, rainstorms, windstorms, sandstorms, and firestorms. Some are fierce and others are small. You have to deal with each one separately, but you need to keep an eye on whats brewing for tomorrow."

_\- Maria V. Snyder_

* * *

**_When All Is Forgotten_**

_Chapter 9: When Morning Comes_

* * *

Eragon shook off his curiosity over the kitten to ask a more important question, "Where have you been?"

Kagome opened her mouth to answer, but a flash from the corner of her eye had her looking past him, to Brom. He was sporting blood on the side of his head, a sword at his waist, and he carried a large bag. "Brom."

"He knows," Eragon said back quickly for he had taken her words in a different way, "that we have dragons."

"Never mind that now." She whispered walking passed him and hesitantly taking Brom's face into her hand, "W-Who did this to you?" Her touch was soft and her eyes even more so, the remnants of tears still shown against her eyelashes.

She saw his eyes widen, but he didn't react in any other way, instead explaining, "I was sneaking around the Ra'zac's camp after dark, trying to find clues. They surprised me from the shadows. It was a good trap, but they underestimated me and I drove them off, they gave me this," he waved at his head, "before leaving, a testament to my foolishness. I fell to the ground and didn't regain consciousness until the next day."

"The Ra'zac?" She heard Eragon ask wonderingly and turned to him slightly.

"The strangers, he can only mean the strangers."

Brom nodded and gruffly replied, "That's enough free knowledge for you both. If you want more, you'll need to agree to let me join you."

"Join us? In wh-"

"Kagome, can I talk to you for a second." She started when Eragon placed a hand on her shoulder gently and began to tug her away, seeing Brom's look, he added, "Alone."

She was confused by his declaration, but she wouldn't complain against him. Not now at least.

"Can you hold him?" She whispered to Brom, handing off the kitten cradled in her arms.

She ignored his protest and allowed Eragon to tug her away. They didn't get very far before he sat on the ground against a tree and leaned against the tree across.

"Well?" She muttered, wrapping her arms around her knees and peering at him, "What's so important that you need to tell me where Brom can't hear us?" A thought occurred to her and she wrinkled her eyebrows, "You trusted him with the dragons."

"I-I just wanted to tell you myself, that's all." He replied and she stared at him thoughtfully, he sighed. "You came from the farm didn't you?"

"You mean the ruins of the farm?" She shifted and held her knees tighter, "yeah."

She saw his eyes darken and knew he was remembering something, "The strangers did it while I was gone. Saphira took me away." He added softly.

"Your dragon right? You hadn't named her the last time we spoke." Kagome placed her head on her knees, "She warned me and Cinder to."

There was a growing sense of dread in the pit of her stomach.

Eragon wasn't speaking, he was hesitant for some reason. His eyes were dark and his hands clenched.

"…Garrow died," He finally mustered out, "the farm was attacked four days ago, but he managed to hold on till last night."

Kagome's mind froze, of all the things she would have expected.

… Garrow's death was not one of them.

She felt nauseous, images of his smiling face came to mind, and all the times he scolded them for running off together.

She'd seen him at Sloan's the day before Cinder carried her off. How could he be gone?

The haunted, dull look in Eragon's eyes at that moment could only mean that his words were truth. "…How?"

She saw the pain on his face and almost wished she hadn't asked. He looked so broken, he, who was always flashing smiles and taking it all in stride. "Burns mostly, the fever is what took him though."

"Oh." She wanted to smack herself. What kind of idiot responds to something like that with, Oh? She buried her face further into her legs and to hide her tears. The shock was wearing off and the picture becoming clear. Garrow really died. "I wish I could have been there with him."

"No," she heard him mutter, "believe me, you don't."

"I'm sorry."

He didn't answer for so long she wasn't sure if he would, finally, he quietly said, "I'm going after the ones that did it."

It took a few seconds for that to sink in and when it did…

"They'll kill you." They destroyed the farm; they killed Garrow -a grown, heavily muscled, cautious man-. How did Eragon plan to fight them?

"I'll get strong." Before she could answer, he added, "You'll get strong too."

She froze again and this time, she was positive her brain had stopped working – permanently.

"Come with me." He whispered and looking into his eyes she saw that pain again, protectiveness surged within and she knew. She could never say no to him.

He could lead her to her death and she would not regret it; not one bit.

"Okay."

Normally, if he convinced her to join him on an adventure he would smile victoriously and slap a hand on her shoulder, now he stood with just a hint of a smile and held out his hand. She took it without hesitation. "Thank you."

"That's what friends are for, right?" She squeezed his hand and he blushed suddenly, making her lips twitch just slightly, it felt strange to smile.

"About what happened before, I'm sorry." His eyes met hers now and it was like a battle; Blue vs. Brown. "I shouldn't have kissed you without asking like that." He finally looked at the ground, "I just… it was a mistake."

With those words, her heart broke. It felt as though she'd ripped it out and stepped on it.

She blinked at him for a moment and a strange ringing started in her ears. A mistake? How could he even think like that?

Hadn't their kiss been beautiful; wonderful even? Had it not left him as star stuck as it did her?

A second of thinking like that and her mind reminded her it such things didn't matter. She needed to focus on getting stronger right?

Still…

"I feel the same." She finally said quietly, "You don't have to apologize though."

He looked back up at her and his mouth opened as if to say something, but he didn't.

"Why don't we go back to Brom now? That is all you wanted to tell me…?" She trailed off and prayed it was. She didn't want to hear about another terrible happening.

"Not totally," seeing her look, he quickly added, "I wanted to ask if you trust Brom."

The question itself sounded foreign to her. 'Trust Brom'? She'd grown up in awe of his stories and, to be straight forward, the man himself. Not trusting Brom seemed ludicrous, especially after he'd helped her so much with her dragon -even unknowingly.

"I-"

"Aren't you finished boy?" The gruff voice of Brom reached her ears before she had a chance to speak and the old man appeared from the way they came.

She noticed Eragon making a face, "I would be if you ha-"

"Yeah we are." She cut him off, sending a small smile to Brom and a warning look to Eragon. "You're coming with us aren't you?"

Eragon stood and went to her side, a sour expression on his face, "We don't need help," he started and seemed to fight off a pout, "but you can come."

"Then we best be going." His face blanked for a second, "I think you'll find your dragon will listen to you again."

Kagome watched as Eragon's face zoned out for a moment –secretly she wondered if she looked like that when she spoke to Cinder- he looked at Carvahall and spoke, "I think they're looking for me."

"Probably, shall we go?" Brom shrugged, his face was surprisingly blank.

"No," Kagome said quickly, blushing when both looked at her funny for her denial, "I-I need to see Horst and get some things…"

Brom denied her with a shake of his head, "It's too dangerous to stay here any longer. The king will send soldiers soon, searching for Riders."

She narrowed her eyes at him and he met her dangerous look, unimpressed, "I won't be long Brom. I _need_ to…" she cut herself off because she wasn't entirely sure what it was she needed to do. Her heart throbbed angrily and she didn't know if it was for Garrow or the thought of her family ending the same. She could feel tears swelling up behind her eyes and rubbed them angrily, "I need to do this."

She didn't give him the opportunity to deny her.

She moved through the trees quickly and with the gentle marks of a hunter. She almost felt as though her many escapades through the Spine would prepare her for the road to come – almost.

Her house seemed empty at first glance, for everyone was running around the village in search of Eragon, so she slipped in as quietly as possible.

After moving through the threshold, across the room, and up the creaky stares, she walked down the hall and to her room. The door was ajar, giving her pause.

She heard weeping from the room beside hers, the sobs of a father who had lost his youngest child.

She wanted to run to him, bury her face in his strong chest and wish herself to another world; a world where Garrow lived, where she was really his daughter, where Eragon loved her. Most of all, though, she wanted to cry.

Yet she knew she couldn't.

Kagome willed herself to ignore him, instead stepping inside her room as silently as possible. She could hear Elain now, giving reassurances with that soft, motherly voice of hers.

She grabbed her large pack, before now she'd taken it around only on exploits to the Spine. She wondered if they would go through the ghastly forest on their journey.

After looking around the room, she was lost. She couldn't bring much; it would only weight them down, but…

She quickly and clumsily grabbed a small, patchwork blanket Elain had given her for her eighth birthday. She rolled it into a small ball and stuffed it into the pack, again, letting her eyes roam the room she'd grown up in.

Her eyes caught on the silver glint of a sword and the two that lay behind it.

Perhaps, on a mission to defeat enemies, swords could become necessary? She shrugged and picked up Inu no Taisho, then Kimi and Joro. Then, making sure not to damage their sheaths, she gently placed them in beside her blanket. They stuck out nearly a foot, but she paid it no mind.

She grabbed a few more essentials and prepared to leave the room, but paused as she remembered something. In a hasty fashion, grabbed at her back, causing her to blanch. "O-Oh no."

She… She had _lost _Brom's little black book!

_Chill, I'll get your things._

* * *

"You can't kill it." Kagome heard Eragon insist and she began to walk faster.

"It's a kitten Eragon," Brom's grouchy voice snapped back, "if I do not end it here it will meet a far crueler fate later."

"Kagome and I can take care of it." Eragon replied snippily and her heart warmed. He was defending the kitten in her absence.

She stepped through the trees and caught sight of his brown hair and the kitten wrapped snuggly in his arms. She smiled, "I'll take care of him." She deftly plucked the little kitten from her friend's arms, ignoring the shock that went down her spine when she accidently touched his fingers. "You won't need to worry about him."

Cinder, who'd been watching the exchange from her, piped up, _He's a cute little creature. _

_I can take care of him, don't you think? _She questioned, _You turned out okay after all. _

_Two different things Kōzan. _He chuckled fondly and she embraced the sound wholeheartedly. His laugh sounded different in her mind from the rumbling sound his body created. His voice was smooth and it flowed like water. When he spoke, his voice was cheerful and childlike, with a serious edge.

He laughed a second time and she could feel the pride her ponderings brought the white dragon. Her dragon loved to be praised, _Don't expect me back soon. The cave is farther than I remembered. _

She hummed _It's fine!_ A firm hand grasping her shoulder snapped her from their connection.

Her eyes met Brom's and she thought she saw a proud spark. Then, it was gone and he gruffly replied, "We're leaving now." Shaking his head, he added, "Staying here is dangerous with everyone out looking for Eragon."

She followed him silently and the thick feel of melancholy settled over their little group as they walked a familiar path. Minutes passed by, feeling like hours and Kagome finally gathered the courage to ask, "Won't they go to the farm first?"

Brom didn't humble her with an answer and Eragon was walking too far ahead to hear her. Her heart panged. _Why have so many bad things happened at once?_

She wanted to cry.

She didn't care if she looked like a child, everything felt so overwhelming; Garrow's death, Eragon's rejection, Horst's tears. She couldn't handle this much sadness. She just wanted everyone to be _happy._

A warm feeling entered her mind and she quickly realized it was Cinder, naively; he was trying to cheer her up. _It's okay to grieve Kōzan! _He replied in a strange tone, surprising her, _but not here. It's not the time. _

_Right. _Kagome thought back idly and she stopped as Brom did.

Eragon was looking through the rubble of the old farmhouse.

Kagome's hands shoot as she stared at the wreckage. She was dismayed to see how quickly nature had taken back the house.

The once proud establishment had caved in, snow and dirt found their way in, making it look like it had been abandoned far long than the four days since its destruction. The barn where she had so many wonderful memories was burned down and a light layer of snow cloaked it's soot.

She saw Brom's hand tighten on his wooden staff before she was distracted by the sound of a dragon's wings. The heavy thump and the harsh air could mean it was nothing else.

The blue dragon, Saphira, dived past them from behind almost brushing their heads. They staggered as a wall of air buffeted them.

Saphira's scales glittered and she landed gracefully near Eragon. He stopped his unsuccessful pillaging to greet her.

Brom stepped forward with an expression both solemn and joyous. His eyes were shining and Kagome could see a tear on his cheek disappearing into his beard.

She looked away, back to Saphira, feeling it wasn't her place to see this private moment. She didn't know him well enough.

So, she focused on the dragon that had been only hip high the last time they had met. She was taller than Kagome now. Her scales seemed to be a deeper blue and the sun shown off them beautifully. Her big, intelligent azure eyes focused on the two humans she wasn't acquainted with, though she seemed to recognize Kagome, and she made not a noise.

Then, her snout moved forward as she examined the old man among them, Eragon's lips twitching as she did. Kagome smiled, "This is Brom, in case Eragon hasn't told you."

She watched as Saphira gave a small nod and sniffed at Brom, the old man stilling as she did so. After she'd finished he extended his hand and she allowed his to touch her brow. With a jolt, she jerked away and retreated behind Eragon.

"What's her name?" she barely heard Brom's question, he'd asked it so softly.

"Saphira." A peculiar expression passed over Brom's face and his hand tightened on his staff, which rubbed into the ground. "Of all the names you gave me it was the only one she liked, I think it fits." Eragon added quickly.

Kagome tuned them out as she felt her dragon reestablish a connection between their minds. Their two consciousness's melded together as one and she relaxed instinctively, but there was something wrong. His connection was forced and his hold on her mind was lax. _Cinder? _

She felt him. He was tired; so tired that he couldn't form words. She couldn't feel anything else but cold from him. _Cinder? Cinder what's wrong? _

The start of panic set in after she waited for minutes with baited breath. He felt colder, more tired as the seconds passed by. She began to run, but strong arms stopped her.

Kagome could hear someone shouting but she was too busy calling her dragon's name. She didn't understand why his mind felt so wrong, why he was so tired, why he wasn't speaking. _Cinder?! Cinder where are you?! _

Outwardly, tears had begun to form in her eyes and she struggled desperately; despite knowing that she couldn't do anything to stop what was happening to him; _just what was _happening?!

_Cinder!? _

A hot knife suddenly plunged into her conscious, a massive scream following it only a second later. It stopped her dead and left her feeling cold.

He was rapidly losing grip of her mind, yet clinging to it furiously.

He screamed again and she let out a heart-wrenching yowl.

**_Cinder_**_! _

He slipped away despite her clinging to him and she screamed a second time.

She saw Brom in front of her, trying to calm her down, but she didn't care. She didn't care about his confusion or the dread in his eyes. She wanted to hear something from her dragon; anything.

"CINDER!"

* * *

_**I luv niki4444**_

**10/19/14** D: Sorry this update is so Shooorrrrtttttt D:

It's here never-the-less! :D I've got about 600 words for the next chapter (Originally just another part of THIS chappy) but I don't have time to finish it this weekend 'cause I need to study for a math test tomorrow D':

**10/26/14** \- UGH NEVERMIND o-O I'd written 2000 words for the next chapter and planned on putting them together (Hence why this chapter didn't come out last week) but unfortunately my computer lost about 20 documents, that included, so I HAVE TO WRITE IT OVER AND UGH I'M SO UPSET BY THIS D:

So…. I'm just going to give you guys the chapter now rather than make you wait another week :/

**11/01/14- **I couldn't convince myself to do it _ I have the entire story planned out and I couldn't put that content into the next chapter D: I'm so sorry you've all had to wait so long for this! I rewrote the rest of the chapter this week and here it is! :D OH NO CINDER D':

HERE COMES THE SUN DU AND DU DUMSSSS! xD

And finally (if you'all are still reading xP) thank you guys so much for all the reviews/follows/favorites! :D Everytime I log onto my computer I'm so happy to see all the support! It's amazing to know that you guys like it so much! :D

**Jayne: **:D Arya won't come for... a while ;P THE KITTEN SHALL LIVE (I THINK :D)

I hope you guys like this and I'll update again real soon! (I'm done with midterms and my essay is all finished so I can write more!) :D

_\- Niki_


	11. Most Definately

"If all else perished, and he remained, I should still continue to be; and if all else remained, and he were annihilated, the universe would turn to a mighty stranger."

\- Emily Brontë

**_When All Is Forgotten _**

_Chapter 10: Most __Definitely_

_At the bottom of this page I'll add the author's not that was here before._

**_Disclaimer: I do not own Eragon or Inuyasha, nor do I own anything directly quoted from the book in this chapter. I own the plot of this story and the OC that will later be added._**

* * *

Kagome screamed until hands pushed against her mouth, muffling the sounds, and cold snow was poured on her head.

She was still looking for her dragon's mind, but her beautiful baby… had disappeared.

The hysteria fell away and left her feeling numb.

"Kagome," someone was grabbing her face tightly, shaking her, "calm down."

She peered at him through a mixture of water and tears, finally seeing Brom's grizzly face.

He seemed relieved that her eyes had focused on him, and his tight grip loosened, "Where is your dragon?" his voice was soft and his eyes softer, even more so when he didn't get an answer. "Has something happened?" seeing her tiny nod and the quivering lip he sighed and pressed his hands against her shoulders, then he looked back to where she could see Eragon holding a bow. "We need to leave, now."

She saw Eragon's eyes flash to her, then back to Brom, "Where will we go?"

"We should settle somewhere for the night." Brom answered, he pulled Kagome into an awkward embrace, "somewhere safe that no one knows of. We need to get this sorted out."

Eragon nodded firmly, but Kagome could see how shaken he was, even with her head crammed against Brom's chest. "Follow me."

So they did.

Brom's grip around her shoulder never loosened and she clung to his waist in return. In that moment, letting go wasn't an option. She needed something to hold onto.

Even Brom's comfort couldn't stop her mind's questions though. Dreadful pictures of her dragon's lifeless body filled her mind, of torture and pain. She tried to reassure herself, perhaps he'd crash-landed; he would surely connect with her mind complaining about his sore wing soon?

She remembered, however, the tired, cold feeling he'd given off. He wasn't in pain for most of their connection, but the pain that came was sudden and excruciating. Someone hurt him; it had to be.

A hand brushed against her cheek, wiping tears away and she blinked at Brom's unusually gentle face. She hadn't realized she was crying.

"The cat; what will you name it?" He asked softly, and Kagome dully noticed the little creature walking closely behind Eragon's feet.

"Sindile."

"And your dragon," He looked away from her, "Cinder was it? I don't recall a dragon with that name." he stared at his staff, which he picked up from the ground before they left, "Why did you decide to give it that name?"

"I named him that," She let go of his waist long enough to brush away the rest of her tears, but her arms were back in an instant, "because his fire won't go out."

"Even a dragon's fire can be wiped away." Brom muttered back and he began to walk faster as Eragon stopped on the edge of a clearing.

Kagome's arms tightened around him and she said, "He isn't dead; I would know if he was."

They reached Eragon, who was looking back at them urgently, and peered into the clearing.

Kagome recognized it immediately. He'd cleared the area of deadwood and other such things a long time ago and showed it to her. He made her promise not to tell anyone about it.

Saphira landed gracefully not far from them and Kagome felt her heart pang. She longed for Cinder to do the same.

"Impressive," Brom nodded toward Eragon and she focused on their conversation, "and no one else knows of this place?"

"Only Kagome, it's safe here." Eragon confirmed and she looked around the little area again. It was just large enough for two people, a dragon, and a fire. _It will be a squeeze with the three of us here. _She thought to herself, but she didn't say anything outwardly.

Eragon and Brom fell into light conversation and Kagome, finally, could take no more. She was beginning to get stir-crazy. She stood and went into the forest, ignoring the questioning and cautious looks and gathered wood.

It didn't take her long to build a fire in the center of the clearing, then she looked toward her companions, "Did anyone have the forethought to bring a pot?"

Eragon, it seemed, had. She accepted it wordlessly and filled it with snow, before setting it over the fire to melt. Brom examined Saphira while she waited for the water to heat.

When it had, Eragon tore off chunks of meat and dropped them into the pot with a lump of salt, the both of them staring at their meal grimly. _It's a far cry from Elaine's cooking. _She glumly thought and her wandering mind snidely reminded her how much Cinder would have enjoyed having it hand fed to him.

The stew simmered quietly, the only sound in an otherwise quiet clearing, and it spread a rich aroma through the clearing. The tip of Saphira's tongue snaked out and tasted the air.

When the meat was tender, Brom sat beside them and Eragon served the food. They ate silently, avoiding eye contact and a mewl behind them called Kagome's attention to a little hungry kitten.

Eragon stood silently, taking a small amount of meat –plenty for a tiny kitten- and allowed it to cool before giving it to the little creature. He tore through it with vengeance and looked for more.

Kagome blew on hers for several minutes and handed it over.

"I'm not hungry." She muttered, seeing the looks her traveling companions gave her.

No one said anything for several minutes, the sound of a cat gnawing on meat being the only noise, until finally Brom spoke.

"Tell me about your encounter with Cinder."

She didn't meet his eyes, "He didn't say anything."

"I wasn't asking if he talked." Brom snorted, "How did he feel?"

"He was cold." Kagome replied quietly, "tired too, but he felt cold more than anything." Her throat felt thick, "Something happened and it hurt him."

Brom nodded thoughtfully, "He was probably drugged."

"If someone attacked him he would have called me sooner."

"It was probably an ambush," Brom said, raising an eyebrow and pointing to his head, "the Ra'zac are fond of those. I'd assume he contacted you immediately after, meaning the drug must have been extremely potent to have such a fast effect."

There was silence for a few minutes until Eragon finally asked, "Is he… alive?"

"Of course he is." Kagome snapped back, but the question dug itself into her heart. What if he wasn't?

"If he wasn't," Brom started, as if reading her mind, "we wouldn't be talking about it. A rider knows when its dragon dies; it's the most painful experience a rider can endure. He wasn't killed, but he was taken."

"How can we find him? We don't even know for certain who took him." Eragon questioned and Kagome was beginning to get irritated with her crushes endless curiosity.

Perhaps because he was asking the questions she was too afraid to.

"The Ra'zac were already in the area and I haven't heard of any Urgals or soldiers nearby. Furthermore, assuming he's a fairly healthy young dragon it would take power and practice to carry out an ambush so skillfully." Brom deduced, "We should assume they have him until proven otherwise." He looked down on them from over his hooked nose, "As for finding him, where was he when he disappeared?"

"North." Kagome muttered, hooking her arms under her toes. In doing so, she was able to create more space between her shoulder and Eragon's. "I don't know where exactly." Seeing Brom's sharp, incredulous look, she added, "He flew me away when the Ra'zac first appeared and I dropped something. He went back to get it."

"Idiot!" Brom scolded, "After the Ra'zac's attack you shouldn't have gone so far from him! Was this possession worth your dragon's life?"

"I don't know." She snapped, "It wasn't mine!" she added quietly, "it was yours." Brom scowled and opened his mouth to speak, but she beat him to it. "It was a little black book. It translated another lan-"

"You took my book." He seemed more exasperated than upset, but she still wished for a few more feet between them in case he went into a rage. "It was an accident."

He shook his head, muttering something unintelligible under his breath, before saying, "Let us sleep now, rather than dawdle tomorrow."

"But you never told me," Eragon interrupted, "how can you talk to Saphira?"

Brom took his time putting more cardus weed in his pipe. Once it was relit and firmly in his mouth, he said, "Very well, if it's answers you want, it's answers you'll get, but you may not like them."

He stood and went to his pack, taking out a long object wrapped in cloth. It was about three and a half feet long and heavy, judging by his grip on it. It was also, quite obviously, a sword.

He peeled away the cloth, earning a sharp gasp from Kagome.

It was beautiful.

The golden pommel was shaped like a teardrop with the sides cut away, revealing a ruby the size of a small egg. The hilt, wrapped in silver wire, was burnished until it gleamed like starlight. The sheath was wine red and smooth as glass, adorned solely by a strange black symbol. Next to the sword was a leather belt with a heavy looking buckle.

Not that Kagome cared about its weight. She reached for it desperately, but Brom ignored her wanting hands to hand it to Eragon.

He raised a brow at her, "Haven't you seen a sword before?" as if to mock her, he patted his leg, where a sword hung, "Didn't you notice this one?"

She shot him a glare, relieved when Eragon, amused, handed her the sword. She smiled at his gratefully and gripped it in her right hand, as he had done. It felt odd, but natural. She drew the sword and it slid out soundlessly. The flat blade was iridescent red and shimmered in the firelight. The keen edges curved gracefully to a sharp point. A duplicate of the black symbol was inscribed on the metal. The balance of the sword was nearly perfect, but she could feel that it wasn't right for her.

It felt lighter than what she was used to, having spent years working as an apprentice in her father's shop.

The craft was something she had never seen, however, and the metal of which it was made was unknown to her. After working so hard to remember the names and basic characteristics of all workable metals, it stung her pride.

By looking at it, she could tell it was unbelievably sharp, but, needing confirmation, she held it gently to her pinky finger. Without any pressure, it sliced deeply into her skin and, seconds later, the blade was snatched from her hands.

A rough hand smacked the back of her head and she jolted forward, crying out. "Hey!"

"Foolish girl," Brom scoffed, pulling away the sheath and putting it back swiftly.

She ignored his insult and took the blade from him, meeting little resistance, "Who forged this blade?" she asked and she was embarrassed when her voice came out breathless. "It hasn't been done in a manner I've seen before."

Brom raised a brow suspiciously and she rolled her eyes. She was raised by a blacksmith, what did he expect? "It's of elfish make." He replied, "It was once a rider's blade." Brom said gravely, "When a rider finished its training, they were presented a sword. The method of its forging has always remained a secret."

Kagome snorted, taking it out of the sheath again, "Not just the method, the metal as well." She showed him the blade, "look at the blade. It's like no iron or steel I've seen. What is its make?"

"Another elvish secret." Brom muttered, he held his hand out for the blade and she gave it back to him hesitantly, "I didn't expect you to know the difference between this and a regular sword." He looked her up and down once, "Where did you learn?"

"Horst is a blacksmith." She replied blankly, watching as a faint smile fell on his lips and he replaced the sword in his pack.

"Smithing is not a trade typically taught to daughters."

A squeaking kitten wormed its way into her lap and Kagome smiled down at it faintly, remembering Cinder doing something similar, "I wanted to learn and he was too kind to refuse me." She shook her head, "I've been his assistant for years."

Brom seemed interested and Kagome inwardly scoffed. He'd never seemed interested before. He assumed her a dull child who never left the house. "Have you smithed a sword?"

"Yes."

"Where did you get it?" asked Eragon, interrupting their brief conversation. At some point, he'd taken the sword from Brom and was inspecting it with an awed expression.

Kagome waited expectantly for his answer and Brom, seeing their expressions, said, "It doesn't matter." he seemed thoughtful for a moment before adding, "I will only say that it took me a series of nasty and dangerous adventures to obtain it." Eragon tried to interrupt, but Brom glared at him until he was quiet. Kagome watched on curiously, "Now if you must know, anyone can learn how to speak to a dragon if they have the proper training."

"Where did you learn?" Eragon asked incredulously and Brom sent him a scathing look.

"I know more about dragons and their abilities than anyone else. On your own, it might take years to learn what I can teach you. I'm offering you my knowledge as a shortcut. As for how I know so much, I'll keep _that _to myself." He drawled.

Eragon, finally out of his seemingly endless questions, quieted.

Now it was Kagome's turn, "Who are the Ra'zac?"

"I thought you would ask that." Brom sighed, his eyes pitied her, "Little or nothing is known about them, but I can tell you this: they aren't human. When I glimpsed one's head, it appeared to have something resembling a beak and black eyes as large as my fist – though how they manage to speak is a mystery to me. Doubtless the rest of their bodies are just as twisted. That is why they cover themselves at all times.

"As for their powers, they are stronger than any man and can jump incredible heights, but they cannot use magic. Be thankful for that, if they could, you would be in their grasp – as your dragon is."

"How many are there?" Eragon asked and Kagome caught sight of his concerned expression. She wondered if it was for their revenge or her dragon.

"Only the two you saw, to my knowledge." Brom blew out a series of smoke rings and watched them float between the branches.

Kagome followed his gaze and gasped; they were changing color and darting around. She looked back at Brom and he winked slyly.

"How did they find out about the dragons?" Eragon questioned, "Even with all that, why Carvahall?"

"They're the king's personal dragon hunters; they have experience. Why don't you tell me where you got the eggs and how your dragons were raised – that might clarify the issue."

Eragon took a deep breath and began his story, instantly enrapturing his audience.

He told of finding the eggs in the Spine while hunting a doe, trying to barter Saphira's egg at Sloan's, her hatching in the barn, taking her to the forest and raising her, and finally he told of meeting Cinder and revealing his dragon to Kagome.

Brom nodded thoughtfully, then his eyes landed on Kagome, "And your story?" He seemed patient for her answer despite his tone.

"It started when Eragon gave me the egg." As she told her tale, she noticed the similarities between her story and Eragon's. She was almost amazed that they had both kept it a secret from their families; to her, it had been a hard decision, but the right one.

"It's unlikely that anyone from Carvahall could have informed the king. The information must have come from someone outside the valley – one who is probably dead by now... you've both handled your situations incredibly. I'm impressed." He shook his head, setting his pipe aside, "Now, let us sleep, this old man needs to rest his weary bones."

Eragon stared nodded blankly into the distance, a stark contrast to Kagome's more open expression. As Brom looked at the two riders, he couldn't help but notice how different they truly were; yet so similar.

Eragon with his endless barrage of questions, his quick temper, and his independent nature, always intrigued him. Kagome with her easy cheerfulness, innocent ways, and dependent nature; always relying on Eragon to help her out of stressful situations. He had watched them grow around each other, as if completing a puzzle.

Eragon was a simple piece, he had long since decided. The boy was raised in such a way that he had little secret talents.

The girl however, was quickly becoming a mystery. He had never once suspected her of being a blacksmith's apprentice, once; he would have thought the only thing less likely was for her to be a rider.

He had always noticed the girl flitting around the village as a child, so cheerful and full of life. She was easily the most likeable person in the village and he'd noticed her silver tongue even then. She was always smiling, big and wide, and chatting off the ear of whoever would listen. Once upon a time, he had enjoyed testing how far he could push her before it disappeared; once upon a time, it never did.

As years passed by, however, he noticed her smile was quicker to fade, especially around him. He noticed how the boy coaxed the girl into situations she wanted nothing of, remaining happily unaware of her ever-fading smile, hidden behind the mask of one. The boy would never see her quick-witted solutions of escape – believing he had saved them from death time and time again.

It was Brom's growing suspicion, that she was smiling for Eragon's sake. He began to wonder if the 'easy' cheerfulness she displayed for the village was truly so… easy. She had grown from a simple creature to a complex puzzle – in his perspective- the older she became.

She couldn't be trusted, he had decided. Now, however, he believed it part of her charm; it was strange the way he could see passed her smile. She smiled for Eragon, he knew, but he saw the pain behind her eyes.

Her dragon had disappeared; she was worried, scared, confused, and _smiling. _

He couldn't help but pity her decision to live such a masked existence.

"Night Gnome." He heard Eragon whisper and looked up in time to see the boy turning on his side, away from 'Gnome'.

"Goodnight."

The look in the girl's eyes surprised Brom. He had been witness to the expression only a few times in his long life.

He knew then, there was a time when he would have worn such a mask for the sake of someone he deeply loved.

* * *

When Kagome's eyes opened, she was being shaken lightly. Her eyes focused on Eragon's familiar face and she noticed tear stains. He'd been crying.

"Good morning," he said softly, and he smiled. It didn't reach his eyes, "Brom's made breakfast." He moved to sit by the fire and jammed his fingers in his armpits.

She moved to sit up; surprised when she felt a little furry creature snuggled up to her side. Her eyes locked onto a kitten whose nose sniffed the air more and more as it woke.

It took nearly a minute for her to recognize the little thing, "Oh Sindile."

After, they ate breakfast quickly, hoping to finish before the cold could snatch away its warmth. She forced herself to ignore Brom's disapproving stare as she fed the majority of her meat to Sindile – who could eat twice his size in meat.

When they finished Kagome joined Eragon in washing her bowl with snow, watching curiously, as he then spread leather on the ground.

"What are you going to do with that?" she asked, poking at it lightly only to shove her hands in her armpits, as Eragon had done previously, "We can't carry it with us." She shivered against the cold as she spoke, ignoring his concerned look.

"I'm going to make a saddle for Saphira – and one for Cinder."

Her heart swelled, "Eragon," She was at a loss for words, unsure of how to react to his sweet gesture. It brought forth her worries and gave her hope at the same time, "thank you."

"Mmmm," said Brom, moving forward and distracting them both, "Well, dragons used to have two kinds of saddles. The first resembled a horse's saddle – but those take time and tools to make, neither of which we have. The other was thin and lightly padded with nothing more than an extra layer between the Rider and dragon. Those saddles were used whenever speed and flexibility were important, though they weren't nearly as comfortable as the molded ones."

"Do you know what they looked like?" asked Eragon.

"Better, I can make one."

"Then please do." Said Eragon, standing aside.

"Very well, but the both of you should pay attention. Someday you may have to do this for yourselves." With Saphira's permission, Brom measured her neck and chest. "I'm afraid we'll have to wait until we've recovered Cinder to make him a saddle."

Then he took three of the six hides and began to work. First, he cut five bands out of the leather and outlined a dozen or so shapes on the hides. Once the pieces had been sliced out, he cut what remained of the hides into long cords.

Brom used the cords to sew everything together, but for each stitch, two holes had to be bored through the leather. He requested help from both Eragon and Kagome in doing so. Intricate knots were rigged in place of buckles and every strap was made extra-long so the saddle would still fit Saphira in the coming months.

The main part of the saddle was assembled from three identical sections sewn together with padding between them. Attached to the front was a thick loop that would fit snugly around one of Saphira's neck spikes, while wide bands sewn on either side would wrap around her belly and tie underneath. Taking the place of stirrup were a series of loops running down both bands. Tightened, they would hold Eragon's legs in place. A long strap was constructed to pass between Saphira's front legs, split in two, and then come up behind her front legs to rejoin with the saddle.

While Brom worked and Kagome eagerly watched, helping whenever she could, Eragon repaired his pack and organized their supplies.

The day was spent by the time their tasks were complete.

Kagome could see the weariness on Brom's he put the Saddle on Saphira and checked to see that the straps fit. He made some small adjustments, murmuring the reasoning behind them for her benefit, and finally took it off, satisfied.

"You did a good job," Eragon acknowledged, grudgingly.

Kagome smiled, feeling cold, but cheery despite it. She was looking forward to making one for Cinder – by herself if she could remember, "He did an amazing job."

Brom inclined his head, to both of them, "One tries his best. It should serve you well; the leather's sturdy enough."

Dinner was made quickly. It tasted good even though it was simple. While they ate, Brom looked over the fire at Eragon and asked, "Will we leave tomorrow?"

"There isn't any reason to stay."

"I suppose not…" he shifted, "Eragon, Kagome, I must apologize about how events have turned out. I never wished for this to happen. Eragon, your family did not deserve such a tragedy and Kagome, your dragon shouldn't have been forced away. If there were anything I could do to reverse it, I would. This is a terrible situation for all of us." A silence passed over the makeshift campsite and Brom said, "We're going to need horses."

"Maybe you two do, but I have Saphira." Eragon muttered grumpily.

Brom shook his head, "There isn't a horse alive that can outrun a flying dragon, and Saphira is too young to carry two of us and there are three. Besides, it'll be safer if we stay together, and riding is faster than walking."

Eragon thought it over, looking at Kagome and back at Brom, finally, he begrudgingly replied, "All right, but you'll buy them. I don't have any money and I don't want to steal again; it's wrong."

"That depends on your point of view," corrected Brom with a slight smile. "Before you set out on this venture, remember that your enemies, the Ra'zac, are the king's servants. They will be protected wherever they go. Laws do not stop them. In cities, they'll have access to abundant resources and willing servants. Also, keep in mind that nothing is more important to Galbatorix than recruiting or killing you both – though word of your existence probably hasn't reached him yet. The longer you evade the Ra'zac, the most desperate he'll become. He'll know that every day you'll be growing stronger and that each passing moment will give you another chance to join his enemies. You must be very careful, as you may easily turn from the hunter into the hunted."

Eragon was subdued by the strong words and he noticed that Kagome didn't seem keen on conversation. Pensive, he rolled a twig between his fingers.

"Enough talk," said Brom. "It's late; we'll say more tomorrow." Eragon nodded and banked the fire, ignoring Kagome's gaze on him.

He wanted to look back at her, perhaps steal her away for a moment and confess his feelings. He certainly dreamed enough about doing so.

However, he could not, at least, not until the Ra'zac were dead and her dragon was safely by her side.

"'Night Eragon."

"Night Gnome."

"Night Sindile," He saw the kitten snuggle into her side and watched her wrap it closer to her chest, pulling her small blanket higher for it and heard her whisper, "goodnight Cinder."

* * *

i luv niki4444

WOOOO IT'S HERE X'D

Now, I want to apologize (again) for how close this is to the actual book. My reasoning is that everything Paolini put in his books was there for a reason (and boy did he give out information) so, I wanted to have Kagome and Eragon learn rather than be characters that somehow know it all without being told.

I can garrantee these chapters are numbered. Three or four more chapters and I'll be able to expand however I like :D

Well not however I like, but you get it! xD

* * *

It's that time of year again! Nano Wrimo started yesterday! :D

Now, if you don't know what Nano Wrimo is, basically, you have to write 50,000 words in the month of November. You don't get anything, but it's a challenge that I, as a writer like to meet every year.

Last time, I focused on my original story, butttt this time! :D I'm focusing on mainly When All Is Forgotten and Dancing in the Dark (revisement). – Which is why I'm already almost half done with the next chapter!

The reason for this announcement, however, is because I'm putting up a poll for When All Is Forgotten. :D I'll encourage you to check it out and vote on it so you get to have a say! xP

Keep in mind I won't post the results (so you won't see the answer) just to keep it as a surprise when it comes up in the story. ;P

Also, feel free to leave me a PM with the reasons for choosing what you did along with a reason for not liking a certain answer – it could affect my choice in the long run.

* * *

Thank you guys so much for all the reviews/favorites/follows! I love that everyone was so worried about Cinder! x'D THANK YOU SO SO SO SO SOOOO MUCH!

I hope you guys like this and I'll make sure to update again real soon!

_-Niki_


	12. Go

"Not I, nor anyone else can travel that road for you.  
You must travel it by yourself.  
It is not far. It is within reach.  
Perhaps you have been on it since you were born, and did not know.  
Perhaps it is everywhere - on water and land."

_― Walt Whitman_

* * *

**_When All Is Forgotten _**

_Chapter 11: Go_

* * *

The next day passed quickly.

It started out just as chilly as the day before and snow blanketed the fire they'd had previously. Kagome shared a quick 'Good Morning' with Brom and tried to ignore the sound of Eragon's tears. She wanted to comfort him, but a brief look from Brom confirmed what she'd been thinking. It wouldn't help.

So she had headed off into the forest to gather wood, after which she made a small fire and gathered snow into their pot before hanging it over to warm. She prepared their breakfast quickly, for Brom was puffing away at his pipe, idly witling and Eragon had stilled under his blanket.

Their breakfast, if it was possible, was even quicker than the day before. She again fed the majority to Sindile, for she truly wasn't hungry, but tried to be much more sneaky about it. She didn't like Brom's disapproving looks any more than she did Eragon's concerned ones.

It was quickly decided that their best bet was following the Ra'zac's tracks south of the farm to the end and seeing if they had backtracked once Cinder was in their hands.

After, they began to trek down the road, following the tracks of the Ra'zac, though they were faint. Kagome wasn't concerned; it was unlikely they'd gone off the road.

On Kagome's part, it was a quiet ordeal, but Eragon asked as many questions as usual and she tuned out their conversation.

She would much rather focus on keeping up with the two, for their legs were longer than hers were and, despite Eragon's bleeding, their speed was relentless. She struggled to keep up.

An hour passed by quickly and she heard a question that sparked her interest. "So what exactly can dragons do? You said that you knew something of their abilities."

Brom laughed, his sapphire ring flashing in the air as he gestured, "Unfortunately, it's a pitiful amount compared to what I would like to know. Your question is one people have been trying to answer for centuries, so understand that what I tell you is by its very nature incomplete. Dragons have always been mysterious, though maybe not on purpose.

"Before I can truly answer your question, you need a basic education on the subject of dragons. It's hopelessly confusing to state in the middle of such a complex topic without understanding the foundation on which it stands. I'll begin with the life cycle of dragons and if that doesn't wear you out, we can continue to another topic."

Brom explained how dragons mate and what it took for their eggs inside to hatch. "You see," he said, "when a dragon lays an egg, the infant inside is ready to hatch. However, it waits, sometimes for years, for the right circumstances. When dragons lived in the wild, those circumstances were usually dictated by the availability of food. However, once they formed an alliance with the elves, a certain number of their eggs, usually no more than one or two, were given to the Riders each year. These eggs, or rather the infants inside, wouldn't hatch until the person destined to be its Rider came into their presence – though how they sensed that isn't known. People used to line up to touch the eggs, hoping that one of them might be picked."

Kagome looked at him curiously, _If that's true, then… Cinder and I truly belong together. _He'd chosen her over all of Alagaësia; she wondered how long he'd waited for her, out of everyone else. _I'll find you Cinder, please be safe._

She tuned in as Brom explained what and when dragons ate. A fully-grown sedentary dragon could go for months without food, but in mating season, they had to eat every week. Some plants could heal their sicknesses, while others would make them ill. There were various ways to care for their claws and clean their scales.

He explained the techniques to use when attacking from a dragon and what to do if you were fighting one, whether on foot, horseback, or with another dragon. Their bellies were armored; their armpits were not. Eragon constantly interrupted to ask questions and Brom seemed pleased by the inquiries. Hours passed unheeded as they talked.

When evening came, they were near Therinsford. As the sky darkened and they searched for a place to camp, Eragon asked, "Who was the rider that owned Zar'roc?"

And so began the tuning out. She merely followed silently as they found a suitable place, shivering against the cold now and again. She took it upon herself to find wood and make a fire and Eragon placed snow in to warm; the actions were becoming habitual.

They ate a light dinner and Kagome watched, with a slight amount of jealousy as Eragon leaned against Saphira contently. She hoped she could do the same with her dragon soon.

Across the fire, Brom was whittling three long sticks, perking her curiosity. He suddenly threw one at her and, failing to catch it, it smacked her forehead hard enough to knock her onto her back. She inwardly cursed as she rubbed her head and picked up the stick from where it had fallen.

"Defend yourself!" Brom barked, standing. He headed straight for Eragon and with one look at her, he assured, "You're next."

She watched nervously as Eragon was beaten down again and again without fail. Finally, a firm smack across the head and he'd lost consciousness.

Brom looked down at him disapprovingly for a moment before turning the stare at her. She gulped, stuttering, "I-I c-could w-wake h-him u-up…"

His lips thinned, "That won't be necessary. Stand up girl." Her legs trembled in terror as she did so.

"Now, pick up the stick." He replied quietly, holding his own with both hands – as if he planned to beat her with it.

She grabbed it with shaking hands and held it in front of herself protectively.

He began to advance, slowly at first, and then he gained speed that was unnatural for a man of his age.

She squeaked.

* * *

"You're both pathetic." Brom cursed, having splashed water on Eragon's face and started sparing with him a second time. Kagome lay behind them, unconscious. He slammed the wood of his stick into the boy's side, ignoring the cry of pain that followed.

"W-What did you do to her?!" Eragon said again, he attacked recklessly, intent on hitting Brom atop his head, and left his chest wide open. Brom was happy to show him his error; the back of his stick smacked solidly against the teenager and Eragon fell back wheezing.

"Nothing I'm not doing to you." Brom scoffed, staring down at him from above his hooked nose, "She's more resilient than you, I'll give her that."

Eragon rose slowly, groaning, and glared, "I'm done."

He was smacked in the head for his comment, "The enemy won't have mercy," he snarled, "the enemy won't pull their punches."

"You are." Kagome's voice sounded from behind and he turned to see her rising, the stick in her right hand, "You're pulling your punches." Her hand was firm, not shaking and her face seemed a little darker. For a moment, Brom was surprised.

He'd never seen her in a rage, it would seem becoming a rider had really changed her.

She took a poorly devised defensive stance and he wondered where she'd learned it, though from the look on her face it was instinctual.

He lunged forward and she managed to block two blows before his stick slammed into her arm, hers smacked his side. He grunted, taking a step back and saw the heavy blush on her cheeks.

"I-I hit you!"

Her face was a mixture of horror and excitement.

They stared at each other for a few moments, ancient blue eyes locked with young ones.

He easily noticed how the excitement faded away as her eyes blanked out of focus and she flinched; all that remained was horror as she again said, "I hit you."

After that, the fight was easy, for she stayed on the defensive and took no moves to hurt him, despite being chastised.

Finally, after both she and Eragon had dropped from exhaustion and pain, their lesson was done.

Sleep came easy that night.

* * *

When Kagome woke, everything hurt – Brom had not been gentle with his stick. She hefted herself up and packed away her blanket. She saw ugly bruises covering the skin of her arms and her movements were sluggish at best.

Brom looked up from the mush he was serving to Eragon –who looked only a little better off than her- and the grin that he already wore doubled, "How do you feel?"

Her expression was blank as she took the bowl he offered and sarcastically replied, "Never better."

The old man practically howled with laughter as she and Eragon downed their bowls.

Once on the road, they traveled swiftly so as to reach Therinsford before noon –despite the angry protest of Kagome's legs.

She'd barely been able to keep up the day before and, combining that with Brom's beating, her legs ached angrily with every movement. After a league, the road widened and they saw smoke in the distance. "You'd better tell Saphira to fly ahead and wait for us on the other side of Therinsford," said Brom. "She has to be careful here, otherwise people are bound to notice her."

"Why don't you tell her yourself?" challenged Eragon.

"It's considered bad manners to interfere with another's dragon."

"You didn't have a problem with it in Carvahall."

Brom's lips twitched into a smile, "I did what I had to."

Eragon eyed him darkly about to say something, but Kagome bumped shoulders with him and offered a small smile.

They continued walking. As the ruts in the road deepened, Kagome noticed the number of footprints increased. Farms began to rise up from the landscape, as they got closer and closer to Therinsford.

She had been to Therinsford few times in the past, a delivery here and there for Horst. Not many chose to have it hand delivered to their doorstep, however, it was too expensive for most.

She'd known walking in that the houses were randomly scattered; the village was larger than Carvahall, but was constructed haphazardly.

"What a mess," she heard Eragon mutter. She turned to look at him and quietly asked, "Isn't this were Roran went?"

"I don't see Dempton's mill though." Eragon said as he nodded his head, he looked a tiny bit disappointed, but his posture told of his relief.

Kagome couldn't hide her concern, but he walked in front of her, so her expression was shielded from his eyes.

"It's ugly, if nothing else." Brom said quietly, agreeing with Eragon's previous remark to lighten the mood.

The Anora River flowed between them and the town, spanned by a stout bridge. As they approached it, a familiar greasy man stepped from behind a bush and barred their way. His shirt was too short, and his dirty stomach spilled over a rope belt. Behind his cracked lips, his teeth looked like crumbling tombstones. "You c'n stop right there. This's my bridge. Gotta pay t' get over."

Kagome nervously took a step to the left, hiding herself behind Eragon.

"How much?" asked Brom in a resigned voice.. He pulled out a pouch, and the bridge keeper brightened.

"Five crowns," he said, pulling his lips into a broad smile. Kagome glared and placed her head between Eragon's shoulder blades, his back stiffened, then relaxed. The bridge keeper had once again raised the price a crown since she'd last been here.

The last time, she'd aimed a well-placed kick and ran through before he could charge her. On her way out she'd easily out ran him a second time.

She heard Eragon begin to complain, but stopped short. The rustling of coins was the only sound for a moment before she heard, "Thank'ee much," his tone was mocking and she looked out from behind Eragon in time to see Brom stumble and catch the bridge keeper's arm to support himself.

"Watch y're step," snarled the grimy man, sidling away.

"Sorry," apologized Brom, and continued over the bridge, before he could however, the grimy caught Kagome's arm.

They stared at each other and his eyes squinted at her. "I seen'ee before."

She smiled angelically, "I can't imagine how sir," his eyes brightened upon the title, "'tis my first time visiting Therinsford." She wondered if he would recognize her face if it wasn't covered in bruises.

His mouth pulled back to reveal his grimy teeth, "I wish'ee a good time."

She waved a bit too cheerfully as she followed Eragon and Brom over the bridge, Brom raising an eyebrow and quietly asking, "What was that about?"

She just shook her head, walking by Eragon's side as he shook with silent temper. It wasn't silent for long.

"Why didn't you haggle? He skinned you alive!" he exclaimed, when they were out of earshot. "He probably doesn't even own the bridge. We could have pushed right past him."

"He doesn't," Kagome confirmed, "and he raises the price every time I visit. The bastard." She muttered to herself.

"I'd assumed so," Brom replied, seeming amused.

"Then why pay him?"

"Because you can't argue with all of the fools in the world. It's easier to let them have their way, then trick them when they're not paying attention." Brom opened his hand, and a pile of coins glinted in the light.

"You stole those!" exclaimed Eragon, incredulous.

Brom pocketed the money with a wink. "Anyone who gulls innocent travelers for a living ought to know better than to carry such a large sum on his person. Come; let us be off before our greedy friend realizes what has happened. If you see a watchmen wandering around, tell me." He grabbed the shoulder of a young boy running between the houses and asked, "Do you know where we can buy horses?" The child stared at them with solemn eyes and then pointed to a large barn near the edge of the village. "Thank you," said Brom, tossing him a coin.

The barn's large double doors were open, revealing two long rows of stalls. The far wall was covered with saddles, harnesses, and other paraphernalia. A man with muscular arms stood at the end, brushing a white stallion. He raised a hand and beckoned them to come over.

Kagome smiled, just a tad, and nodded to him, "Haberth, Horst sends his regards." The man looked her over for a moment, seeming confused – she supposed two years was long enough to look a bit different, even without the bruises- and finally his eyes brightened.

"Kagome; is that you?" He asked and his lips turned up when she nodded. He fondly ruffled her hair, "You've grown, I'll give you that. Though," he scanned over her form and then looked at the two men behind her, "I'd rather not have seen so many bruises. Where on earth did you get them?"

She smiled back at him cheerfully, "You know I've wanted to learn to use a sword - thought it was finally time to find myself a teacher." She gestured to Brom, "Brom this is Haberth, he and my – Horst, know each other. Haberth meet Brom."

Haberth offered a rough palm and shook hands vigorously with Brom and Eragon, and then Brom looked to the horse, "That's a beautiful animal."

"Yes, he is. His name's Snowfire." He paused briefly and then asked, "How can I help you?" his brown eyes shifted from Kagome to Brom.

Brom nodded. "We need three horses and a full set of tack for each. The horses have to be fast and tough; we'll be doing a lot of traveling."

Haberth was thoughtful for a moment, "I don't have many animals like that, and the ones I do aren't cheap." The stallion moved restlessly; he calmed it with a few stokes of his fingers.

"Price is no object. I'll take the best you have," said Brom. Haberth nodded and silently tied the stallion to a stall. He went to the wall and started pulling down saddles and other items. Soon he had three identical piles. Next, he walked up the line of stalls and brought out three horses. One was a light bay, another a roan, and the last a dark chestnut. The bay tugged against his rope and the chestnut was poking at Haberth's unoccupied hand. Kagome smiled as she vaguely recognized the chestnut and wondered if it was the same horse, she'd seen the last visit.

"He's a little spirited, but with a firm hand you won't have any problems," said Haberth, handing the bay's rope to Brom.

He smiled a bit as he handed the chestnut over to her, "I don't imagine Shelley's forgotten you, so you shouldn't have any problems with her," His eyes drifted down to the kitten at her feet, "though, I'd pick up that little critter before it's trampled underfoot." She blushed and picked up Sindile, listening to him purr as she began to pet him. Shelley placed her head on Kagome's arm, just above where the kitten lay and he sent the chestnut a bored look.

Brom, meanwhile, had been getting acquainted with the bay, "We'll take him," he said, and his eyes landed on Kagome as the chestnut fondly sniffed her hand and she giggled, "and the chestnut." He eyed the roan, "the other one, however, I'm not so sure of."

"There are some good legs on him."

"Mmm… what will you take for Snowfire?"

Haberth looked fondly at the stallion, "I'd rather not sell him. He's the finest I've ever bred – I'm hoping to sire a whole line from him."

"If you were willing to part with him, how much would all of this cost me?" asked Brom.

Eragon tried to put his hand on the bay like Brom had, but the horse shied away. Kagome blinked as, only a few moments later, it calmed and looked at him with liquid brown eyes.

Haberth used his fingers to add up the price of the purchase. "Two hundred fifty crowns and no less," he said with a smile, clearly confident that no one would pay that much. Brom silently opened his pouch and counted out the money.

"Will this do?" he asked.

There was a long silence as Haberth glanced between Snowfire and the coins. A sigh, then, "He is yours, though I go against my heart."

"I will treat him as if he had been sired by Gildintor, the greatest steed of legend," said Brom.

"Your words gladden me," answered Haberth, bowing his head slightly. He helped them saddle the horses. When they were ready to leave, he said, "Farewell, then, for the sake of Snowfire, I Hope that misfortune does not befall you."

"What am I, a pile of bones?" Kagome teased and he laughed, replying, "I suppose misfortune befalling you wouldn't please me either."

"Do not fear; I will guard them well," promised Brom as they departed. "Here," he said, handing Snowfire's reins to Eragon, "go to the far side of Therinsford and wait there."

"Why?" asked Eragon, but Brom had already slipped away. Kagome paused and looked back at the large barn, "Kagome?"

"Do you think I could go back…?" She asked quietly, thinking of Horst. If she could asked Haberth to pass on a message…

"No, he's Horst's friend. If you go back and start spouting off nonsense he won't let you leave." Eragon said softly, surprising her by already knowing what she was thinking. "If he sees Horst, you'll probably come up anyway; he'll tell him you're safe."

She nodded just a little and felt Sindile begin to stir in her arms, where she'd been petting him idly. His claws struggled to reach her hair and caught in her shirt. She deftly tugged them out.

They left Therinsford with the three horses and stood on the side of the road. To the south, the hazy outline of Utgard shone brightly, sitting like a giant monolith at the end of the valley. It towered over the lesser mountains that surrounded it.

Brom returned shortly and gestured for them to follow; they walked until Therinsford was hidden by trees. Then, Brom said, "The Ra'zac were here alright. Apparently, they stopped here to pick up horses, as we did. I was able to find a man who saw them. He described them with many shudders and said that they galloped out of Therinsford like demons fleeing a holy man." He looked at Kagome, "he didn't mention seeing a dragon. It begs the question; what did they use to take Cinder?"

Kagome tried to ignore the dancing feeling in her stomach that warned that, perhaps, the Ra'zac had not taken him. Perhaps it had truly been an accident. "They left quite an impression."

"Quite." He shook his head, "If I had to take a guess, I'd say they ran into a company of soldiers and handed Cinder of; so that they could lure us without the hindrance moving an unconscious dragon would bring."

The quiet was deafening and finally Eragon quietly said, "When we were in the barn, I touched the bay's mind by accident. I didn't know it was possible to do that."

Brom frowned, "It's unusual for one as young as you to have the ability. Most Riders had to train for years before they were strong enough to contact anything other than their dragon." His face was thoughtful as he inspected Snowfire. Then he said, "Take everything from your pack, put it into the saddlebags, and tie the pack on top." They did as they were told while Brom mounted Snowfire.

Then Brom turned to Kagome, he looked at her thoughtfully, "Try to connect with… the chestnut. If you can."

"Her name's Shelley." Kagome huffed as he looked her up and down doubtfully, unknowing of the sly smile that had appeared on Brom's face after he'd turned his back on her.

She calmed Shelley easily, rubbing her snout smoothly and then moving to pat her neck. Then she looked doubtfully at the saddle. She'd gone bareback riding once or twice with Eragon, but never for any real distance.

She wasn't even entirely sure how to get on a horse by herself; especially not while holding a sleeping kitten.

She hefted herself up with one arm, situating herself awkwardly in the saddle. Then she patted Shelley again, desperately hoping she wouldn't spook.

"Is this going to do the same thing to my legs as riding Saphira?" she heard Eragon ask.

"How do they feel now?"

"Not too bad, but I think any hard riding will open them up again."

"We'll take it easy," Brom promised. He gave them a few pointers, and then they started off at a gentle pace. Before long, the countryside began to change as cultivated fiends yielded to wilder land.

Above them, growing larger with every step, loomed Utgard, its craggy precipices deeply furrowed with snowy canyons. The black rock of the mountain absorbed light like a sponge and dimmed the surrounding area. Between Utgard and the line of mountains that formed the east side of Palancar Valley was a deep cleft. It was the only practical way out of the valley. The road let toward it.

The horses' hooves clacked sharply over gravel, and the road dwindled to a skinny trail as it skirted the base of Utgard. Kagome noticed that upon the peak looming over them was a steepled tower. The turret was crumbled and in disrepair, but it was still a stern sentinel over the valley.

"What is that?" she asked, not daring to point at it and hoping that Brom would see where she looked.

He didn't have to look up, but said bitterly and with sadness, "An outpost of the Riders – one that has been lasted since their founding. That was where Vrael took refuge, and where, through treachery, he was found and defeated by Galbatorix. When Vrael fell, this area was tainted. Edoc'sil, 'Unconquerable,' was the name of this bastion, for the mountain is so steep none may reach the top unless they can fly. After Vrael's death, the commoners called it Utgard, but it has another name, Ristvak'baen – the "Place of Sorrow.' It was known as such to the last Riders before they were killed by the king."

Kagome blinked up at the mountain, she was in awe of it, yet at the same time, it made her sad. From the stories, Kagome was able to remember that Vrael was something of a leader to the Riders. Utgard was where that leader had died. The name Ristvak'baen fit it better than its common name.

They traveled for long hours around Utgard. It formed a solid wall to their right as they entered the breach that divided the mountain range. They were still a long way from exiting Palancar. For a while, they were in a sloped pass, winding over hill and gully, following the Anora River. Then, with the sun low behind their backs, they mounted a rise and saw over the trees.

From beside her, Eragon let out a gasp and she sucked in a sharp breath. On either side there were mountains but below them stretched a huge plain that extended to the distance horizon and fused into the sky. The plain was a uniform tan, like the color of dead grass; long, wispy clouds swept by overhead, shaped by fierce winds.

It explained Brom's strong insistence that they buy horses. It would have taken them weeks or months to cover that vast distance on foot.

"We'll wait until tomorrow to make the descent," said Brom. "It's going to take most of the day, so we should camp now."

"How far across is the plain?" Eragon asked, still amazed.

"Two or three days to over a fortnight, depending on which direction we go. Aside from the nomad tribes that roam this section of the plains, it's almost as uninhabited as the Hadarac Desert to the east. So we aren't going to find many villages. However, to the south the plains are less arid and more heavily populated."

They left the trail and dismounted by the Anora River .As they unsaddled the horses, Brom gestured to the bay that Eragon was patting. "You should name him."

Eragon considered it as he picketed the bay, "Well, I don't' have anything as noble as Snowfire – or as… interesting as Shelley, but maybe this will do." He placed his hand on the bay and said,"I name you Cadoc. It was the name of my grandfather, so bear it well." Brom nodded in approval, but Eragon felt slightly foolish.

Kagome eased his worries by pursing her lips at him childishly and muttering, "I was 13; Shelley was Haberth's wife's name…"

Eragon blanched and teasingly replied, "I didn't know _you _named her."

Brom shook his head as the two began to bicker and made dinner. It was served quickly and, after, Brom stood and barked, "Catch!"

Neither Eragon nor Kagome managed to catch the long strips of wood before they were smacked in the head.

Eragon groaned beside her, "Not again!" he whined and Kagome looked down at the piece of wood solemnly, remembering what she had told Haberth earlier that day. She wanted to learn how to use a sword. Perhaps, this beating would become something more.

The training session was shorter than the first, but it was still long enough for Kagome to collect a new mass of bruises. Brom was continuously getting more frustrated by her refusing to go on the offensive, particularly when he left openings for her to take.

When they finished sparring, Eragon threw down his stick in disgust and Kagome looked down at her own regretfully as Brom sent her a look of disappointment. _Why can't I do anything right?_

She clenched her fists tightly and heard footsteps approaching her. "Kagome," Brom's voice was surprisingly soft as he addressed her, and she looked up at him hesitantly. "tell me why you won't attack back." Seeing the look she sent him, he cut her off as she was about to speak, "if we don't address the problem it won't be fixed. Now tell me, why."

She quieted and looked back down at the stick clenched firmly between her hands with white knuckles, "I-I don't know. I got a feeling the last time… and I didn't like it."

"I would be more worried if you had." Brom shook his head, placing his hands on her shoulders. "The Ra'zac will not simply fall dead at your feet. How do you intend to fight them, if not with a sword?"

"I don't know."

"And the soldiers the king sends after you? The Urgals? What will you do if you can only defend against them? You're a dragon rider Kagome." He sighed, seeing the start of tears in her eyes, "It shouldn't have been so, you're too gentle a creature for this life –but I will do my best to keep you alive. Help me do that." His voice became stern and she nodded slightly. "You'll help me? Then say it."

"I'll attack you." She whispered, "so long as I don't really hurt you." She silently vowed that she wouldn't, no matter how carried away their sparing sessions got as she learned.

* * *

i luv niki4444

Heyyyyyyyyooooo! :D Another chapter... right after the last.

YES :D

Okay so, Nano Wrimo is a lot easier right now (BECAUSE I HAVE LIKE NOTHING TO DO SO WRITING ISN'T A PROB) but last week I got wayyy behind after a massive headache. I was pretty much incapaciated for two days and I barely got the chapter out.

So... I was 4000 words behind on Nano Wrimo... guess what? *Grins* I'M CAUGHT UP. I'M ABOUT TO BE AHEAD CAUSE I'M GONNA GO WRITE THE NEXT CHAPTER AND- *shot*

Anyway xD Thanks to **Kira Kyuu**, **Guest**, and **NightlyRowenTree f**or reviewing! :D I usually don't have a lot of time to write these author's notes so I don't add the thank yous, but... asdfghjkl; x"D TANK YOU *HUGS*

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Responses:

Guest:

I don't know how you're 'supposed' to pronounce it but I always say it like Sinned(Sind)-isle(ile). I'll google it to see if it'll show what it's really supposed to sound like or if I have it correct xD

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I hope you guys like it and please review!

I'll have another one out for you in no time :D

_-Niki _


	13. Distance

_"If you want to forget something or someone, never hate it, or never hate him/her. Everything and everyone that you hate is engraved upon your heart; if you want to let go of something, if you want to forget, you cannot hate."_

― C. JoyBell C.

* * *

**_When All Is Forgotten_**

_Chapter 12: Distance_

_Note: I'M SO SORRY! D: I accidently updated the wrong chapter! Here's the ACTUAL new chapter_

* * *

The next morning, they set out early.

Kagome's ache the day before seemed nothing compared to that morning. Her hands shook from exertion with the slightest movement, and each joint seemed to complain.

After trying to eat for nearly three minutes, she gave up and gave her meal to Sindile, he was happy to gobble it down.

As they mounted their horses, she heard Eragon say acidly, "If this keeps up, you're going to batter us to pieces."

"I wouldn't push you so hard if I didn't think you were strong enough."

"For once, I wouldn't mind being thought less of," muttered Eragon.

They began the steep decent with only a small amount of hesitance. In many places, the trail had nearly disappeared and they had to find their own way down. At times, they had to dismount and lead the horses on foot, holding on to trees to keep them from falling down the slope. The ground was scattered with loose rocks, which made the footing treacherous. The ordeal left them hot and irritable, despite the cold.

She felt Shelley tiring beneath her and ran a hand through her mane soothingly. The horse puffed beneath her and she could see Cadoc doing the same in front of her.

They stopped to rest when they reached the bottom near midday. To their left, the Anora River veered and flowed northward. A harsh wind scoured the land, whipping them unmercifully. The soil was parched, and dirt flew into their eyes.

Kagome worriedly patted Shelley, for she could see the chestnut's wide, frightened eyes. A few words of encouragement were whispered, but her hooves shuffled nervously. Kagome looked to Brom and Eragon for help, but they were concentrated on choosing which trail to take. Brom was looking at each with a crucial eye and muttering to himself.

He looked back at her for a moment, then eyed her horse and finally nodded to her and looked away.

Kagome blanched, _Was that supposed to help me?!_

"Calm her with your mind. Didn't I tell you to try?" Brom finally said, though he did not approach. "Don't worry, even if you cannot reach her you're safe; I can."

She looked down at the worried horse doubtfully and rubbed her neck soothingly. She knew she couldn't spend much time dwelling on the mechanics of how such things could happen; she didn't have such luxury.

So she closed her eyes and focused herself, despite the fight her mind put up, not wanting to leave itself vulnerable. She imagined it was Cinder, but when their minds connected, the feel was alien and she nearly recoiled.

Shelley panicked beneath her and she tried to send comforting messages. _It's all right Shelley; we're safe. _The chestnut calmed, slowly, as Kagome continued to reassure her gently and, after the minutes ticked by, Kagome finally dared to drop their connection.

She opened her eyes, her heart aching, and locked eyes with a certain, smirking old man.

"Two riders," he said, almost wistfully, and then he turned to Eragon, "They've gone to Yazuac."

"Where's that?"

"East and four days away, if all goes well. It's a small village near the Ninor River." He gestured at the Anora, which streamed away from them to the north. "Our only supply of water is here. We'll have to replenish our water skins before attempting to cross the plains. There isn't another pool or stream between here and Yazuac."

Kagome deftly got off Shelley and joined the others in filling the water skins. They watered the horses and drank as much as they could from the river. Saphira joined them and took several gulps of water. After they were satisfied, they turned eastward and started across the rough plains.

* * *

Kagome spit out the dirt in her mouth, and ran her parched tongue over her chapped lips.

The wind was driving her insane; the ceaseless gusting followed them throughout the day and extinguished any chance of comfort. Evening only strengthened the wind, rather than subduing it, and sleeping was hard.

Since there was no shelter, they were forced to camp in the open. She watched Eragon pull up some scrub brush, a short tough plant that thrived on harsh conditions, and make a careful pile.

He tried to light it, but the woody stems smoked and a disgusting smell filled the air. Frustrated, he tossed the tinderbox to Brom, "I can't make it burn, especially with this blasted wind. See if you can get it going: otherwise dinner will be cold." He grumbled.

She drew closer as Brom knelt by the bush and looked at it crucially, rearranging stems as he saw fit. Then, he struck the tinderbox, sending a cascade of sparks onto the plants. There was smoke, but nothing else. Brom scowled and tried again, and again he failed. "Brisingr!" he swore angrily, striking the flint a third time.

Fire shot up, surprising Kagome and drawing Eragon's intrigue; Brom stepped back with a pleased expression.

"There we go. It must have been smoldering inside."

They sparred with mock swords while the food cooked. Fatigue made it hard on all three of them, but Brom made sure to keep their sessions reasonably long. After they had eaten, they lay next to Saphira and slept, grateful for her shelter.

The same cold wind greeted them in the morning, sweeping over the dreadful flatness.

Kagome noticed that Eragon's lips had cracked during the night and every time he smiled or talked beads of blood covered them. The same could be said for Brom – though he did not smile often.

She herself could only wait for her blistered lips to crack, but until then she was content with not experiencing the pain.

* * *

On the third day, the wind stopped, but the sky ahead was dark with thunderheads.

Brom looked at the clouds and grimaced, "Normally I wouldn't go into a storm like that, but we're in for a battering no matter what we do, so we might as well get some distance covered."

Kagome winced at it and looked down at the kitten clutched tightly to her chest. With a small amount of hesitation, she placed him inside one of her saddlebags, ignoring the mewl he gave. "Hush, stay in there for now."

It was still calm when they reached the storm front. As they entered its shadow, Kagome looked up. There was an exotic shaped hole in the middle of the storm, where the clouds were white. For a moment, she was able to convince herself it was shaped as a dragon, and that Cinder was up in the clouds.

Her heart throbbed painfully in her chest as she reached toward the sky, and then, he was gone.

"SAPHIRA! LAND!"

Her head shot toward the blue speck in the sky that could only be Saphira. She dived and angled back the way they had come to gain time. As they watched the tempest's wrath struck them like a hammer blow, Kagome clutched onto Shelley's reigns, gasping for breath as a frenzied howling started up.

The wind tore at their clothes and the horses dug their hooves into the ground. Shelley let out a whinny and her mane snapped in the harsh air.

Kagome squinted and, despite the dirt in her eyes, she searched for Saphira's dark form. She saw her land heavily and then crouch, clenching the ground with her talons.

The wind reached her just as she started to fold her wings. With an angry yank, it unfurled them and dragged her into the air. For a moment, she hung there, suspended by the storm's force. Then, it slammed her down on her back.

With a savage wrench, Eragon yanked Cadoc around and galloped back up the trail, goading the horse with his heels. Kagome watched after him helplessly, using all but her mind to convince Shelley to follow.

The horse was hesitant, but followed Cadoc, until finally she balked and would go no further. Up ahead, Cadoc was nearing Saphira. With a snarl, Kagome jumped from her back and began to force her way forward, despite the wind. She started to run, but the wind knocked her onto her stomach and her head banged forcefully against the ground.

Still she got up, running her very hardest toward where Saphira clutched the ground and ignoring the blood that streamed down the side of her face. In front of her, Eragon had jumped from Cadoc and was taking the same approach she did.

A particularly hard gust knocked them forward and Kagome had the foresight to try to catch herself with her hands. She picked herself up a second time, and continued on. She was close to Saphira now and another wind picked up, throwing Kagome back and causing Saphira to somersault over Eragon's head.

Her flailing wing clipped Kagome's arm and she let out a small shriek.

Kagome looked down at her bleeding arm and gagged, unable to believe how fast her blood poured out. Then, she looked up, at the wing still flailing and resolved filled her a second time.

She could not let Eragon lose his dragon. She pounced onto the wing and pushed with all her might.

Finally, it crumpled in at the joints and Saphira tucked it against her body firmly. A second later, Eragon's form vaulted over her back and Kagome let out a girlish scream as his heavy body smashed into her lighter one.

She saw stars and a burst of pain made her whimper; a crack could barely be heard over the wind, sickening to her ears. Eragon had not heard it. He stared at her for only a moment before turning back to make sure Saphira was all right.

Kagome stared up at the sky, at the hole that was shaped in the perfect resemblance of a white dragon, and smiled faintly. Then, she blacked out.

* * *

Kagome awoke to a stinging pain in her chest.

She opened her eyes, saw the red flare of a fire, and let out a soft groan. How long had she been passed out for? Beside her sat Brom, casually smoking his pipe. He peered at her with narrowed eyes. "How do you feel?"

"Like I'd be better off dead." She mumbled and smiled half-heartedly, "Is Saphira…" she trailed off, her smile dropping and concern laced her tone.

"Saphira's fine." Brom shook his head, "It was a foolish thing you did; you were nearly killed." He smirked slightly as she looked down shamefully, "but you weren't. At least two broken ribs, a severed arm, and a battered brain. If you weren't you, I'd say there was risk of permanent damage."

"My arm isn't severed." She muttered, checking it to make sure. Most of her forearm was wrapped tightly in bandages, but it wasn't terribly bad. She then stared at him, not sure whether to be offended by his comments or happy, but finally settled on simply being relieved. "It could have been worse." She looked around them wearily, "How long have I been out for?"

"A full day."

Her eyes widened and she looked around them. They were at a curve in a river and, sitting up with Brom's help and no small amount of pain, Kagome saw a town a little into the distance.

"How did we get here?" She asked softly, beginning to feel guilty.

Brom raised an eyebrow at her change in tone, "We strapped you onto Saphira's back." Seeing her alarm he added, "You were in no danger of falling and, if you had, she would have caught you." He stopped his smoking to grab a water skin, "Can you lift your good arm?" he asked and eyed her left hand wearily and she nodded; carefully, she took it from him and drank a small amount. "You can have it all. It's the last of it, but we'll be in Yazuac soon. If you feel well enough to ride."

"I can ride, but I'll need help getting on a horse." She replied, she tried to be slow in gulping down the rest, but she couldn't help herself. After days of little water, having nearly half a water skin at her disposal was encouraging.

Her eyes widened suddenly and she looked at Brom again, this time with concern, "Has Sindile had anything to drink?"

"He's… disappeared." Brom said wearily, "we couldn't find him in the storm."

Kagome stared back at him, "… Did you look in my saddle bags?"

The look he sent her was strange, like she was an odd little creature, and he quickly checked Shelley's saddlebags. The little kitten he pulled out looked to have been woken from a deep slumber. Brom wordlessly handed him to her.

The kitten mewled from her lap and she played with its ears idly. "When do we leave?"

"When you are ready, Eragon is sleeping against Saphira, but waking him will be easy enough."

Kagome considered that, having noticed Saphira huddled by a crook in the river, and finally decided it would be best to wake Eragon. For the sake of her dragon, they could not let the Ra'zac continue to hold such a lead.

Brom helped her stand and walk to her horse. Once there, it was difficult and painful to mount the chestnut, but she did it without complaint. _Some pains can't be avoided, _she told herself and touched her right arm experimentally, then winced, _just accepted._

She shook herself from her stupor and noticed that Eragon was now awake. He was approaching her saddle with a solemn expression.

He reached her and looked into her eyes seriously, "Thank you." His hand closed around hers, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine Eragon," A furious blush rose to her cheeks, "we should go. The more ground we cover…"

"The closer we are to the Ra'zac." He nodded and let go of her hand, leaving a tingling sensation behind. She ignored it and grasped her horse's reigns tightly.

They kept a swift pace, anticipating the food and drink they would soon enjoy. As they approached the small houses, they could see smoke from a dozen chimneys, but there was no one in the streets. An abnormal silence enveloped the village. By unspoken consent, they stopped before the first house.

Eragon abruptly said, "There aren't any dogs barking."

"No." Brom said lowly.

"Doesn't mean anything, though."

"…No."

Eragon quieted and Kagome softly replied, "Someone should have seen us by now."

"Yes."

"Then why hasn't anyone come out?"

"Could be afraid." Brom commented, squinting at the sun.

"Could be," Eragon replied, he was quiet for a moment, "And if it's a trap? The Ra'zac could be waiting for us."

Brom shook his head, "We need provisions and water."

"There's the Ninor."

"Still need provisions."

"True." Eragon looked around. "So we go in?"

Brom flicked his reins. "Yes, but not like fools. This is the main entrance to Yazuac. If there's an ambush, it'll be along here. No one will expect us to arrive from a different direction."

"So we'll go around the side?" Kagome asked. Brom nodded and pulled out his sword, resting the bare blade across his saddle. Eragon strung his bow and notched an arrow.

Kagome pulled her own sword out regretfully. She couldn't use her right arm and fighting with her left would be useless. Holding the unsheathed sword, however, brought her a small semblance of safety.

They trotted quietly around the town and entered it cautiously. The streets were empty, except for a small fox that darted away as they came near. The houses were dark and foreboding, with shattered windows. Many of the doors swung on broken hinges. The horses rolled their eyes nervously.

Kagome's palm tingled, but she didn't scratch it. As they rode into the center of town, Kagome's grip on her sword fell slack and it tumbled to the ground; her eyes opened wide and a gasp left her mouth.

"Gods above." She heard Eragon whisper.

She felt sick and tears stung in her eyes.

A pile of bodies rose above them, the corpses stiff and grimacing. Slaughtered men lay over the women they had tried to protect; mothers still clasped their children, and lovers who had tried to shield each other, rested in death's eternal embrace. Black arrows stuck out of them all and their clothes were soaked in blood; the churning ground was stained with it. Neither young nor old had been spared. Worst of all, however, was the barbed speak that rose out of the peak of the pile, impaling the white body of a tiny baby.

Kagome tried to force her eyes away from the scene, but they were locked up its horror. She knew it was something she would never forget. "Who... w-who could have…" she choked out a cry and Brom patted her back comfortingly.

A crow dropped out of the sky, like a black shadow, and perched on the spear. "Oh no you don't," snarled Eragon. He pulled back his bowstring and released an arrow. With a puff of black feathers, the crow fell over backward, the arrow protruding from its chest.

If anything, the crow's death made her feel more sick and she watched silently as Eragon threw up over Cadoc's side; she could barely fight off her own nausea.

She looked away.

"Do you want to wait for me outside Yazuac?" Brom asked gently, and she heard Eragon softly reply, "No… I'll stay." His voice was shaking.

"Kagome?"

"I'll stay too." She said hoarsely. She tried to wipe away the tears blurring her vision, but they were replaced so quickly that she gave up and released a loud sob.

"Who could have done…?" Eragon whispered, repeating the question that she'd dared to utter previously.

"Those who love the pain and suffering of others. They wear many faces and go by many disguises, but there is only one name for them: evil. There is no understanding it. All we can do is pity and honor the victims."

He dismounted Snowfire and walked around, inspecting the trampled ground carefully. "The Ra'zac passed this way," he said slowly, "but this wasn't their doing. This is Urgal work; the spear is of their make. A company of them came through here, perhaps as many as a hundred. It's odd; I know of only a few instances when they have gathered in such…" He knelt and examined a footprint intently. With a curse, he ran back to Snowfire and leapt onto him.

"Ride!" he hissed tightly, spurring Snowfire forward, "There are still Urgals here!"

Kagome spurred her horse after Cadoc as he shot into motion. They neared the edge of town when Kagome's palm tingled again and she saw something large a second too late. "ERAGON!"

A bulky creature drove its fist into Eragon's side, smashing him from his saddle. It raised its eyes to her panicked ones and sneered.

Shelley turned around and raced the other direction.

Kagome tried to calm her but they quickly reached the center of town again and the chestnut continued to bolt.

No amount of reassuring, mentally or physically, was enough to get the horse to stop.

Kagome screamed as another bulky creature, which she assumed to be an Urgal, appeared from in between buildings and slammed his fist into Shelley's side.

The horse toppled, sending Kagome flying from her back and a little kitten to fall out of her saddlebag. Kagome landed heavily, clutching her ribs as pain rocked through her body. She looked through tears at the Urgals sneering above her, and, just as suddenly as it appeared, blood poured from its chest.

It stared at her uncomprehendingly for a moment before it was pushed aside and Kagome gasped, struggling to back away despite the pain of her ribs.

Before her stood a creature she'd come to hate. "Where is Cinder? What have you done to my dragon?" she questioned, doing her best to sound intimidating, despite her position. The creature wasn't fooled and she was grabbed roughly; she regretted dropping her sword.

"Sssssafe." The Ra'zac hissed and a sharp pain in her neck welcomed her into the world of unconsciousness.

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OH LOOK! A flying update _

It's hereeeeeeeeeeee :D

WHY do I do this to myself? x'D I've not written a word since Tuesday so I'm sooo behind right now! DDDD:

But hey... I'm writing now! X)

Thank you so much **ultima-owner**, **NightlyRowenTree**, **Jayne**, **Kira Kyuu**, **Wicken25**, and **Guest**! for reviewing!

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_Responses:_

Guest:

I'd originally looked up the word survivor in japanese to name my own kitten, but I couldn't find a name with that translation. However, my search did result in the African name "Sindile". I chose it because I thought it sounded like Sandile - which is a pokemon xD

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Anyway, I really really REALLY hope you guys liked this! Here comes the start of the reason this fic will probably be changed to rated M.

Please leave a review telling me what you though! :D

_-Niki_


	14. Breathtaking Fox

_The marks humans leave are too often scars." _

― John Green

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**_When All Is Forgotten_**

_Chapter 13: Breathtaking Fox_

Just to warn you guys, there's been a HUGE time skip. xD Sorry about the inconvenience but I'll write the reason why at the bottom. :)

Enjoy! ;)

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_Eragon woke with his hands tied behind his back. He turned sleepily, bumping his nose into something; curious, he opened his eyes._

_It was Brom's arm. They were tied together behind his back and the old man laid beside him, unconscious. _

_For a moment he could only be confused, then, footsteps echoed and a black boot stopped beside his face._

_He cringed and looked up, but what he saw was not what he expected. A black and white helmet obscured his capture's face. The person, whoever it was, was clearly a woman, for her armour was that of a female's and it hugged her body. It was white, but black details covered its form. _

_He glared at the person as she crouched beside him, reaching for his magic. He started voicing a word that would kill this imperial soldier dressed so uniquely, but then halted, puzzled. He could not remember the word. Frustrated, he tried a second time, but it slipped from his grasp like water in a stream._

"_Little rider, you've run from our king for too long." She said, her voice was low, like a man's and black eyes shone through her helmet. He shivered, preferring to look passed her. There was a rattle off to his left and Eragon was appalled to see both Ra'zac were settled there. One was fitting a muzzle over Saphira's head. _

_Her wings were pinioned to her sides by black chains; there were shackles on her legs. Eragon tried to connect with her, but felt nothing. _

"_She was most cooperative once we threatened to kill you," hissed a Ra'zac. _

_Their attention was diverted when Brom groaned and rolled onto his side, one of the Ra'zac grabbed his shirt and thrust him effortlessly into the air. "It'sss wearing off." _

"_Give him more." _

"_Let'sss just kill him," said the shorter Ra'zac. "He has caused us much grief." _

_The taller one ran his fingers down his sword. "A good plan, but remember, the king's instructions were to keep them __**alive**__." _

"_We can sssay he was killed when we captured them." _

"_And what of this one?" the Ra'zac asked, pointing his sword at Eragon, "what if he talksss, or if she does?" Now he pointed his sword at the armoured soldier and she froze. It appeared she had not been listening, rather, she had preferred to stare at him. _

_Eragon shivered again._

"_They would not dare." _

_There was a long silence, then, "Agreed." _

"_You cannot have him, creature," the warrior said, "he belongs to the king now." She stood from her kneeled position to stop the Ra'zac from dragging Brom to the center of the camp. _

_The short Ra'zac snarled at her and she unsheathed a sword, it shone an eerie purple light on the camp. "Do you wish to test me, scum?" she said and Eragon noticed that her quiet, low tone was deadly as it was deep. "Our king puts more value in my life than yours. Would you risk punishment should you actually succeed in harming me?" Her eyes were cold as steel, hatred came off her small form in waves._

_She stood in front of Brom, watching the Ra'zac decide their next move, and something in Eragon noticed a change in her composure. This woman who exuded hatred stood almost… protectively. _

_He shook it off at her next words, "He's a useless creature, that I can clearly see, but his majesty demanded his life. Do you truly want to risk his wrath?" She stepped aside, sheathing her creepy sword, "Do it. We shall see who meets the gallows like a common street rat." _

_The Ra'zac backed off, hesitantly, but in the next moment, an arrow struck the taller creature's shoulder. They rolled behind some boulders and the warrior dodged swiftly, with speed that did not seem entirely natural. Eragon was in her arms in an instant; a shield against what fired arrows from the dark. _

_There was a lull, and then arrows came from the opposite direction. Caught by surprise, the Ra'zac reacted slowly. Their cloaks were pierced in several places, and a shattered arrow buried itself in one's arm. _

_Eragon dully wondered why their hidden archer did not aim for the warrior in white armour. Could it have been because of the obvious speed she held? Or maybe because it was too dark to see the weak spots in her metalwork? _

_With a wild cry, the smaller Ra'zac fled toward the road, kicking Brom viciously in the side as he passed. His companion hesitated, then grabbed a dagger from the ground and raced after him. As he left the camp, he hurled the knife at Eragon. _

_The warrior did not notice the knife thrown from the Ra'zac, aimed at her precious shield, for her attention was on the bowman. Someone else, however, did. _

_A strange light suddenly appeared in Brom's eyes. He threw himself in front of Eragon, his mouth open in a soundless snarl. The dagger struck him with a soft thump, and he landed heavily on his shoulder. His head lolled limply. _

"_No!" Eragon screamed and he fought against the warrior who held him, though only finding it in him to be faintly surprised when she easily let him go. He didn't pay her any mind and knelt by the old man's side as he gasped for breath. _

_He heard footsteps approaching, the twang! of a bowstring, and a small grunt. He glared at the woman as he turned around and tears fell freely down his cheeks. "GO!" he yelled, too upset to care she was an enemy; that she was evil and would not listen, "JUST GO AWAY!" _

_She did not, though an arrow protruded from a kink in the shoulder of her armour. Instead, she knelt beside him and held her hand above Brom. Eragon knocked it away angrily. _

_Her gaze was even when it met his, "Would you rather he die, than let me save him?" he didn't know how to respond to the question; he was taken off guard and she held her hand over the old man a second time. Her hand glowed a lovely shade of white, and Brom's wound stitched itself together before Eragon's eyes. _

"_They clipped a lung, but that is healed. I've stopped the internal bleeding as well. He will live, with a bit of sleep."_

_Brom stared at her intently, watching as she stood and her hand went into Eragon's hair. _

"_I will allow you to keep your freedom for now Dragon Rider; gods know how you need it." _

_Eragon watched her walk away, his mouth agape and, after she had disappeared, he turned back to look at Brom's now sleeping form. His hand shook as he searched out where the dagger had stabbed him, but the wound had vanished. _

_Fresh tears trickled down his cheeks and he fell to the ground, hearing footsteps behind him. _

_The scene changed. _

_He was in a dark cell, his mind felt numb and he could scarcely remember who he was. He sluggishly wondered where he was, why he was there. _

_Over time, it eased and his mind whispered to him. He was in a dungeon. They were putting drugs in his food; he mustn't eat. _

_Food was given to him, but he discarded it; out the gutter, it went._

_Shortly after, he heard screaming and tried to raise himself off the ground. Chains rattled. _

_There was crying, a girl's crying, he tried to focus on where she was, but he could not. _

"_You defied your king." Something snapped, the screams had died now and the silence sounded eerie, "You were ordered to observe the Ra'zac, you saved a traitor." Another snap, Eragon felt sick as the puzzle pieces began to ease into place. _

_The screams, the crying, it had come from the warrior in white armour. The warrior who had saved Brom. _

_A third snap rang out – and he knew it to be a whip. Why were they hurting her? _

"_I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry…" She repeated the words again and again, as the hours trickled by and the snaps continued. Her torturer repeated words too, "Disloyal." "Betrayer" "Filth". _

_It sank in suddenly and his eyes widened; he realized that healing Brom had dropped her from the king's favor. _

_He tried to imagine the woman he'd seen that night. She was cold and hateful, but had shown kindness to Brom – however faint it might have been. He could not imagine that woman and the girl begging for forgiveness to be the same._

_Finally, her torturer left and he heard her drag her body to the corner of her cell; it was beside his. He drug himself to the corner next to hers, listening to her heavy breathing for several minutes as he chose his words. _

"_Are you alright?" he asked finally. _

_The breathing quieted._

"_I'm Eragon; you're the woman who saved my friend Brom aren't you? You were with the Ra'zac that night-" _

"_I remember." Her voice was lower now than it had been while she begged for mercy; he realized that she was trying to make her voice sound deeper. _

"_Why are they… why are they doing that to you?" _

"_I have betrayed his majesty's trust; therefore, I must face his wrath." _

_He was beginning to recognize the voice; something was oddly familiar about it. "I'm sorry that you're being… hurt." _

_She said nothing, and he wondered why he bothered to try to coax answers from her. She was an imperial soldier. "Thank you," he said softly, "if it wasn't for your actions…" _

"_There is no need to thank me, Dragon Rider. I simply repaid a debt I once owed." _

_The voice became clearer to him and he was certain he knew it. The name tugged at his lips as he tried to remember who it belonged to, "What do they call you?" he asked, hoping for an easy alternative to a discovery. _

_She did not speak. _

_For hours, he tried to convince her to talk, but she would not reply. Finally, he gave up with a huff. _

_If she wanted to be silent, he decided, it was not worth his time to fight her._

_He did not know how much time passed, but a routine started. After his first meal was given to him, her torturing began and it did not end for some time after his third. _

_It sickened him and, had he been willing to eat, he would not have had the stomach to do it. _

_After what he could assume to be three days, she spoke. "Eragon." The way she said his name tugged at his heart, it rolled off her tongue as if she'd said it for years. His head was less fuzzy than it had been days ago; he recognized the fondness in her voice, the emotion behind her words, "you must not eat the food they give you; nor drink anything." Her voice was a deep whisper, scratchy from screaming, "it's drugged. If you wish for any semblance of escape, you must avoid it." _

_His throat clenched as he continued to listen to her, now recognizing the voice that he had once known so well. "Kagome." Tears fell onto his cheeks, "is that you?" _

_He was met with silence, but he chose to believe that was her answer. _

_It was Kagome; it was a once cheery girl who now exuded hatred, it was his best friend who had saved Brom, it was the woman he loved who was tortured for so long. _

_His first meal came and her screams filled the air. _

_Eragon covered his ears, trying to make them disappear as he sobbed silently. _

_This was his fault. _

_Everything was his fault._

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Eragon snapped awake, breathing harshly and sitting up from where he'd rested on the freezing stone. He ran his fingers through sweaty hair and closed his eyes briefly.

When they opened, he had calmed.

He tried to take his mind off the nightmare, as he always did, but –as always- nothing truly helped. Perhaps, if it had simply been a nightmare things would have been different –but it wasn't. His nightmare was a memory, two to be precise.

Some of his last memories of the girl he loved.

He shook off his reverie, knowing that dwelling on her would do neither of them any good. He looked beside him, to where Brom slept fitfully and chuckled. At his side, Sindile slept, having nuzzled into him in the night. Brom's hand was curled protectively above him. _To think, once Brom wanted to get rid of that cat. _

He shook his head, stifling his smile and glanced over at his dragon.

Saphira was still asleep as well, her eyes wandering sightlessly under her eyelids, and her lip was curled. He smiled slightly, and then jerked as she growled again.

_She must be dreaming, _he realized and secretly he wished that he could sleep so peacefully.

Eragon stood and stretched, and then he peered at the far corner, where Murtagh slept on his back.

He could hardly believe that his friend, the boy who had unleashed arrows on the Ra'zac and Kagome so long ago, was the son of Morzan. –He did believe it, however. He had heard the older boy's story and Brom confirmed it countless times.

In the beginning, Brom had not trusted Murtagh solely for that reason, but a strange glint had been in his eyes when Eragon asked if they should leave him. Brom had told Murtagh that, so long as he did not pose a threat to Eragon, he could travel with them.

Murtagh stretched suddenly, his silky dark brown bangs fell into his eyes; which opened slowly, revealing steel gray irises. The other boy's face was serious as always and his eyes just as fierce despite having just woken.

As Murtagh sat up, he seemed surprised that Eragon was awake. "Morning." He said quietly, sitting up.

"How long have you been awake?" asked Eragon in a hushed tone, realizing that his friend had not only just woken. He remembered many a time when they woke up; Murtagh was a morning person, but not for the first minute after waking.

"Awhile. I'm surprised Saphira or Brom didn't wake you sooner; your nightmares continue to rouse us all."

Eragon winced, "Sorry about that, though I'm glad you didn't. I was tired enough to sleep through a thunderstorm," he said wryly. He sat by Murtagh and rested his head against the wall. "Do you know what time it is?"

"No. It's impossible to tell in here."

"Has anyone come for us?"

"Not yet."

They sat in silence without moving. Two men, one not even out of his boyhood, the other barely; yet they'd already had to face more than most men ever did.

Eragon felt oddly bound to Murtagh. _I've been carrying his father's sword, which would have been his… his inheritance. We're alike in many ways, yet our outlook and upbringing are totally different. _He thought of the scar on Murtagh's back – a twisted thing that reached from his right shoulder to his left hip- and shivered. _What man could do that to a child? _

He closed his eyes and his head banged against the wall. _I suppose the same kind that can torture one. _He again relived Kagome's horrifying screams, fighting the tears that came with remembering. He tried to picture her as she was now, but all that he saw was the hopeful, flushed face of the girl she was before they had left Carvahall.

He wondered if her face had changed all that much; or if they'd left scares there in addition to the supply that had surely been left from her torment. _Is that why she wore the helmet? _

He shivered then, remembering that at least one thing had changed behind the helm. Her eyes had appeared black,_ Was that a spell? Or did the king… _He didn't want to imagine what the king could do to change the color of her eyes – or why he would want to.

Eragon remembered loving her eyes; they were so blue. They were what he recalled first about her now.

He fell asleep to the color of her eyes, the flush of her cheeks, and the smile he'd come to adore. For the first time in months, he was happy she haunted his dreams.

* * *

They were ushered through the tunnels relatively quickly, with a grumpy bald man leading them. The man was the very same that had forced them to share their memories the night before.

Brom had been deemed trustworthy at first glance, but Eragon and Murtagh were a different story. Especially after Murtagh had refused to allow the man to enter his mind - the reason why he was watched so carefully was they road on horseback though the tunnels.

Orik, the dwarf kind enough to let them inside the mountain _in the first place,_ seemed upset and grumpily muttered things from the front of their small line.

The further they rode, the more Eragon began to anticipate meeting the leader of the Varden, Ajihad. The man who led the rebels against the king was a shadowy figure to the people within the Empire. He had risen to power nearly twenty years ago and since then had waged a fierce war against King Galbatorix.

No one knew where he came from or even what he looked like. It was rumored that he was a master strategist, a brutal fighter. With such a reputation, Eragon worried about how they would be received. He glanced backwards to where Brom road on Snowfire with Sindile peeking out of his arms. Perhaps they had nothing to worry about; Brom had joined the Varden under him after all.

_Or was that before Ajihad came into power? No, he's said that he trusted Ajihad before – but what if he's as bad as the rumors say? _A moment later, he corrected his thinking. _Those rumors were probably started on the king's request._

Now he could see thick marble pillars laced with rubies and amethysts in rows along the walls. Scores of lanterns hung between the pillars, suffusing the air with liquid brilliance. Gold tracery gleamed from the pillars' bases like molten thread. Arching over the ceiling were carved raven heads, their beaks open in mid-screech. At the end of the hallway rested two colossal black doors, accented by shimmering silver lines that depicted a seven-pointed brown that spanned both sides.

The bald man stopped and raised a hand. He turned to Eragon. "You will ride upon your dragon now. Do not attempt to fly away. There will be people watching, so remember who and what you are."

Eragon dismounted his horse, and then clambered onto Saphira's back. _I think they want to show us off, _she said as he settled onto the saddle.

_We'll see. I wish I had Zar'roc, _he replied, tightening the straps around his legs.

_It might be better that you aren't wearing Morzan's sword when the Varden first see you. _

_True. _"I'm ready." Eragon said, squaring his shoulders.

"Good," the bald man replied. He and Orik retreated to either side of Saphira, staying far enough back so she was clearly in the lead. "Now walk to the doors, and once they open, follow the path. Go slowly."

They did as told and the doors opened to brilliant light. The inside of the mountain was certainly brilliant and Eragon gave a hesitant wave to the crowd of people watching him.

It was quiet for a moment, but one cheer broke out, then many.

They walked along the path proudly, Saphira puffing smoke and holding her head high. She loved the attention and awe they responded with.

When they reached a heavy gate, it rumbled open before them as hidden chains slowly raised the mammoth beams. A four-story-high passageway extended straight toward the center of the city –which he had been informed, was called Tronjheim.

The top three levels were pierced by rows of archways that revealed gray tunnels curving off into the distance. Clumps of people filled the arches, eagerly watching Eragon and Saphira. On ground level, however, stout doors barred the archways. Rich tapestries hung between the different levels, embroidered with heroic figures and tumultuous battle scenes.

A cheer rang in their ears as Saphira stepped into the hall and paraded down it. Eragon raised his hand, eliciting another roar from the throng; many of the dwarves did not join the welcoming shout.

The mile-long hall ended in an arch flanked by black onyx pillars. Yellow zircons three times the size of a man capped the dark columns, coruscating piercing gold beams along the hall. Saphira stepped through the opening, then stopped and craned back her neck, humming deeply in her chest.

They were in a circular room that reached up to Tronjheims's peak a mile overhead, narrowing as it rose.

The walls were lined with arches – one row for each level of the city-mountain- and the floor was made of polishing carnelian, upon which was etched a hammer girdled by twelve silver pentacles, like on Orik's helm.

The room was a nexus for four hallways- including the one they had just exited – that divided Tronjheim into quarters. The halls were identical except for the one opposite Eragon. To the right and left of that hall were tall arches that opened to descending stairs, which mirrored each other as they curved underground.

The ceiling was capped by a dawn-red star sapphire of monstrous size. The jewel was twenty yards across and nearly as thick. Its face had been carved to resemble a rose in full bloom, and so skilled was the craftsmanship, the flower almost seemed to be real. A wide belt of lanterns wrapped around the edge of the sapphire, which cast striated bands of blushing light over everything below. The flashing rays of the star within the gem made it appear as if a giant eye gazed down upon them.

Eragon could only gape in wonder; nothing had prepared him for this. It seemed impossible that Tronjheim had been built by mortal beings. The city-mountain shamed everything he had seen in the Empire. He doubted if even Urû'baen could match the wealth and grandeur displayed here. Tronjheim was a stunning monument to the dwarves' power and perseverance.

The bald man walked in front of Saphira and said, "You must go on foot from here." There was scattered booing from the crowd as he spoke. A dwarf took Tornac, Snowfire, and Eragon's horse away. Eragon dismounted Saphira but stayed by her side as the bald man led them across the carnelian floor to the right-hand hallway.

They followed it for several minutes, and then entered a smaller corridor. The guards remained despite the cramped space and Eragon frowned. After four sharp turns, they came to a massive cedar door, stained lack with age. The bald man pulled it open and conducted everyone but the guards inside.

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i luv niki4444

It's here! It's here! WOW I feel like I'm updating so much lately xD - For this story at least. I'm hoping to finish book one before NanoWrimo ends. ;P

Next chapter will be in Kagome's POV xD I'm finding it... interesting to write. Already halfway done with the chapter tho ;P

I honestly love the quote for this chapter xD John Green is one of my favorite authors right now. - And the fitting quotes are lining up! I've found three or four for the next chapters already! :D

**Alright, so, here's the reason why this story is set so far into the future.** \- Basically, in the last chapter, Kagome was kidnapped by the Ra'zac. I have the entirety of what happened to her from there on written down - HOWEVER, I noticed that it would fit a lot better if I snapped forward and put in flashbacks on the occurrences. I can guarantee that eventually everything will come out, but, for now, what happened to Kagome and Cinder is -for the most part- a mystery.

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Late Response! x'D I forgot that I was planning to answer...

Jayne chapter 13 . Nov 15

Awesome chapter I love Brom's sarcastic humor lol I hope to read more soon so what did the razaac ( hope I spelled it so l you know what I mean lol) mean when it said safe? Just curious and will kagomes scar tingle every time she senses danger ? Hope to find out soon :)

_xD Thank you so much! :D 3 Brom's amazing! _

_"Safe" basically meant that Cinder was safer than she was. xD It was also a way of answering Kagome's question while demonstrating that they were under no obligation to tell her anything. (Aka - he/she was being a bit of a smart ash.) _

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Wow! 82 reviews?! Thank you so much guys! :D Let's work to make that a hundred! ;P My thinking is that the more reviews, the more people will notice! Which, in turn, could result in someone else publishing an Eragon/Kagome fanfiction... ! I WANT TO READ AN INHERITANCE CYCLE/INUYASHA FIC SO BAD D': I've read and reread all the fics that are currently out IT ISN'T ENOUGH.

THANK YOU SO MUCH to **ultima**-**owner**, **Jayne**, and **firestone1836** for reviewing! As cheesy as it sounds I really do treasure every review I get and I'm so so happy when I get one! :D

With much love,

_-Niki_


	15. In Your Den

_"It's so hard to forget pain, but it's even harder to remember sweetness. We have no scar to show for happiness. We learn so little from peace."_

― Chuck Palahniuk

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_**When All Is Forgotten **_

_Chapter 14: In Your Den_

_Oh look a chapter! Enjoy! : 3 _

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_**March 19, 8000**_

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Kagome wiped the sweat from her brow, stepping back to smirk at her sparring partner's sprawled form. "You'll have to try harder than that if you want to beat me, Dewain."

The elf shot a glare at her, tucking long, silvery hair behind his pointed ear. His deep blue eyes were stern and he eyed her, "You've certainly gotten arrogant." He replied dryly.

Her lips pulled back into a frown and she shrugged, seemingly unaffected by the heavy armour that should have made such an action difficult, "I was simply stating a fact – I know the extent of my ability. Perhaps you should press yourself harder, isn't it shameful to lose to a human?"

"You can hardly call yourself that, Rider." He drawled and pointed to the ear revealed because of her high ponytail. It was pointed sharper than a human's were, but not like an elf's either. "Your ears become more like ours every day; your eyes as well." Indeed, her eyes were more catlike than they had been months ago, and her features more beautiful.

"Yet human I remain." She held her hand out to him, hoisting him up after he'd taken it. "Come, you have laps to run and I've yet to finish my training."

"You scarcely need it." She heard him mutter faintly as she walked to where she'd taken her helm off. Spring would soon end and the sun already beat down on her armoured form; the metal grew burning hot at some moments. She'd learned not to complain, but taking off her helm was a temporary solstice.

She placed it back on her head and approached her commanding officer and the general of King Galbatorix's army, Gunnar.

He was a tall, well build man whose eyes spoke of danger. Ink black hair framed his stern face and his eyes were a dark brown; a scar ran from his left temple to his chin. Her commander was one of the most dangerous men in the army, she knew. He specialized in turning recruits against their former connections – perhaps that's why he'd been gifted with an elf and a Dragon Rider.

His eyes fixed on her and her eyes lowered to the armour he wore. It was expensive, lightweight material that wouldn't limit his speed and strength as effectively as heavier armour.

She saluted him properly before requesting her training armour. He eyed her and nodded finally, gesturing for her to take the needed equipment from behind him, in their makeshift armory. As she walked away, she could hear Dewain making a similar request.

She walked several yards ahead of him rather than allow him to catch up, despite their friendship. Within the imperial army, it was dangerous to be seen making allegiances to other members of the squads. Often, the weaker link of the friendship was beaten and displayed to the stronger – to show how powerless they were. To show how weak friendship made them.

_I will not be seen as weak. _She thought bitterly, her face taking a dark scowl as she entered the armory and contemplated what she would need.

Their training armour was divided into sections, blue for the weakest, green the medium, and red the strongest. Inside these sections, armour labeled with lighter shades of the color were lighter weight and as it grew darker, they gradually became heavier. When the shade was near black, soldiers moved to a stronger color. She walked by the blue and the green sections and began to pick up darker shades of red.

They were heavier than her usual light red weights, but Kagome didn't care. She'd long ago forsaken the pursuit of comfort for survival. To survive, she had to be strong.

"You push yourself too hard." She heard Dewain whisper quietly, his voice out of reach of prying ears. "You shouldn't force so much on yourself for _his majesty._" The elf's words were a bitter hiss and Kagome pretended to ignore him. He stopped beside her and began to take weights that were such a dark red that they were nearly black.

"Hypocrite." She lowly muttered as she grabbed gauntlets.

He snorted in response, "I'm an elf, this is not difficult for me."

After she had finished gathering her equipment, she marched along to the changing quarters and dully noticed that Dewain counted slowly to ten before following. They were set near to the armory, perhaps a hundred yards away, so that trainees could easily exchange their daily wear for whatever their training regimen required.

She stepped through the heavyset doors, idly, having pushed her armful of equipment to one arm and hefted the door open. Dewain entered behind her, catching it with his foot, but she wasn't worried by his arrival; genders were not separated, even here.

She glanced behind her, to where Dewain had begun taking off his sweaty tunic, and quickly looked away. They had a deal – he would not look if she wouldn't. If their contract was broken… they had decided on a punishment.

"You're such a hard ass." Her partner cursed behind her and she could imagine him rubbing the spot on his side where she'd hit him with the blunt of her sword _particularly _hard. Her lips twitched; she imagined he would be feeling that one for a couple days

"You should have been more vigilant." She hummed as she unstrapped her armour and let it fall loose from her body. She worked quickly, her hands going through the motions as if they'd done it a hundred times. They had, in fact.

She heard a clang as he accidently dropped something and shook her head, hearing him curse again. Elves were supposed to be graceful, weren't they? _He must be the black sheep of the bunch. _She thought, amused.

_Or perhaps he's faking it; perhaps he's the king's spy. _Cinder's rumbling voice echoed through her mind and she immediately relaxed, despite the message he brought.

_Cinder? Has your training with Shruikan ended already?_

Her dragon snorted, _Training, is that what we are supposed to call it? It is a game of tag – and if I am caught, I'll be eaten. _

_Then I suppose you won? _She hummed, surveying the blistered, red skin of her arms and stomach with distaste. _I've been cooked, it would seem. _

_I can claim the same. _

She frowned, imagining the titanic black dragon, Shruikan chasing after her baby and spewing fire.

"Kagome," Dewain replied dryly, "even breastplates will be crushed under that amount of pressure; I suggest you loosen your grip."

She turned her head, finding his eyes looking over her naked back and at the armour in her hands. "Dewain! You promised you wouldn't look!" her complaint was feminine, a stark contrast from the cold, confident persona she'd undertaken. She was tempted to throw her gauntlet in his smug face.

"I could hear the metal groaning from here," he rolled his eyes, "you should be more thankful that I warned you. Captain Gunnar doesn't take kindly to his equipment being destroyed –as you know."

She muttered to herself, scrunching her eyebrows as she finished dressing in her training metals. She turned around fully, as a means of revenge, but Dewain was no longer there. She huffed, _Stupid elf._

_I haven't heard you speak so much about another two-legged creature since Eragon. _Cinder mused, turning her face red with the implication.

_I don't… like Dewain like that. _She denied, uncomfortably shifting and walking out the double doors.

The start of amusement had begun in Cinder's voice and she could imagine his eyes sparkling. _Of course, you don't Kōzan. _

She ignored his mocking tone and began to jog left, toward the mountain; glaring blond hair confirmed that she wasn't the only one who would be doing the obstacle course late today. She caught up to her friend quickly and bumped shoulders with her. "Hey."

The girl blinked at her for a moment before a small smile came to her face, "Kagome, you haven't done the course today?" she breathed a sigh of relief, even as they began to run, when Kagome shook her head.

"General Gunnar told me to do it last today; he didn't want me to pair up with-"

"Dewain?" the taller girl teased, smiling cheekily when Kagome scowled, "Come now, surely you've noticed how the two of you gravitate toward each other for partnered events."

"We aren't friends – he's just the only one here that can keep up." She muttered back darkly.

"Yes, well, that _not-friend_ of yours can take care of himself just as well as you can." The blond wisely said, shaking her head, "You don't have to pretend not to care about him; even if they decide to make an example of the two of you, I doubt they'd be capable of succeeding." Her hand reached out and patted Kagome's shoulder; "If they found out about our friendship on the other hand…" she whispered and trailed off, grimacing. They stopped, seeing the entrance of the course and walked the rest of the way, speaking in hushed voices as they did.

"Don't underestimate yourself Hannah."

The smile had already left her cheery friend's face, however, and a deep frown had taken its place, "I'm a useless friend to you here, perhaps, if we'd met in another life…"

"I'm sensing some tension," another voice piped up and arms wrapped around Hannah's neck in a friendly manner, "do you two lovebirds need a quick squeeze?"

The girl who'd appeared behind them was fit in build, taller than both of them, and had long red hair plastered in a bun atop her head. Her brown eyes closed contently as she nuzzled Hannah's neck.

Hannah blushed, "M-Melanie!"

"Don't be so stingy." The redhead complained in response. Kagome began to smirk, but Melanie's eyes shot to the movement and she smiled toothily. Then, without warning, her arms wrapped around Kagome's neck and the girl's smirk disappeared, "Don't think I forgot about you either, Kagome!" she noticed Kagome's scowl and tutted, "If you didn't want to be hugged, you shouldn't be so huggable!"

_How can they be so innocent? _Kagome thought as she watched the two interact, they were chatting idly and teasing each other. She had long ago lost the part of her that could do such things; the part of her that forced a smile for her village, her family, and for _him. _

_Do not be discouraged Kōzan, smiling or not, we love you. _

_Thanks Cinder. _Kagome ignored the 'we' and looked around for possible partners now that Hannah had hers back. Her eyes landed on her commander, who was non-surprisingly wearing the training equipment that she did. His eyes locked onto her and then glanced to the two girls by her side. She stepped away from them, making it clear with her body language that she wasn't associating with them.

His dark eyes fixated on her in a calculated manner and he walked to her side, "You will partner with me today, Rider."

She nodded stiffly, but as they moved to enter the course together, there was an interruption. A horse's hooves sounded against the earth behind them and they turned around. A baby-faced man mounted the source of the noise and he got off quickly. There was sweat on the side of his face as he jumped down and saluted Captain Gunnar. His eyes shifted nervously to her before darting back to the commander after he commanded him to speak.

"His majesty requests the presence of General Gunnar and Brigadier General Kagome in his throne room immediately."

Kagome stiffened with shock, not at the mention of a title she hadn't known she held, but by the king's request. She wasn't ready to see him again.

"It wouldn't be wise to keep the king waiting." She heard her General say and nodded numbly.

_Cinder, can you carry the commander and me in full armour? _She asked feeling as his mind went from groggy to full attention.

_Of course. _He responded, _but not for long._

_To the throne room? _

He snorted, proudly stating, _That's not even a challenge. _

On cue, she heard wings thump in the air and his glistening body swooped over her head. He landed in front of them majestically, with his head held high and his chest puffed out. His onyx eyes fixed on her and smoke puffed from his snout. _Are you showing off? _Kagome asked smirking; she mounted him quickly and looked back at Gunnar questioningly, "Are you going to join us?" He wordlessly climbed up behind her and sat down, his hands hesitantly wrapped around her waist.

_There's no one to show off to._

_I take offense to that. _Kagome scoffed, fighting the urge to raise an eyebrow by her commander's hesitance to lay a hand on her. She grabbed his hands and squeezed, "I won't bite, now hold on." His hands tightened and she mentally told Cinder to take off.

His wings spread and he braced his legs; then, they were flying. Kagome's eyes closed peacefully and she let out a sigh.

They belonged in the air, with the wind at their backs and birds fluttering around them. She smiled gently as her eyes opened and Cinder's speed increased. She barely remembered Gunnar rode behind her and, if he had not, she knew that it would have taken much longer to reach the king. Both Rider and Dragon wanted to have some fun in the air.

Instead, Cinder landed on top of the castle, Gunnar jumped down quickly, seconds later she joined him, and they walked together to the throne. The silence was so thick a knife would not cut it and neither made a move to attempt it.

Kagome did not care either way, thinking about the meeting that was soon to take place. The last time she was here, she had been forced to one knee to beg for the madman's forgiveness and for his mercy. At the time, she was half-mad from pain and had begged shamelessly, now she looked back on it bitterly.

She did not want to change the past; she had no regrets even after all they had done because of her actions. She had saved Brom and if, in return, she had to suffer for a few days… well, she didn't have a problem with that.

_I deserve it; I am a traitor. _She had betrayed Brom, Eragon, and Saphira.

That hurt her far more than any form of torture her king could dish out.

The guards outside the throne room opened the giant doors as they approached, making an echoed creak spill forth and they walked inside.

The room was darkened, but it wasn't hard to see the many stairs that led up to a giant black throne; on it, their king sat. His hair was pitch black, framing his sharp face and dark eyes. His skin resembled copper and was nearly flawless, devoid of wrinkles and the like. He looked to be in his fourth decade despite being well over one hundred years old. His clothes were dark and mostly hidden by the heavy black cape that hung over his wide shoulders. He wore gloves of the same material.

They bowed until he quietly ordered them to rise.

He sat regally, looking down at him with dark eyes and a kind expression that masked his cruel one. "General Gunnar, my thanks for bringing my dearest pet, was it much trouble?"

Kagome flinched, hoping that Gunnar would not take advantage of the situation and knock her from the king's favor.

"The Rider is no problem."

King Galbatorix's eyes sparked with dark intent, "How goes her training?"

Gunnar paused then said, "She's surpassed all expectation my king," his gaze was even, "as true a prodigy as I've ever seen." He elaborated and Kagome's eyes became grateful, "Her swordsmanship has improved exponentially, despite the bump we had at the start. Her magic is far more impressive, however. The rate she absorbs knowledge of any kind is uncanny. Her healing ability is her greatest trait I must say, it will serve you well in the future."

"It's unlike you to sing such praises General." The king responded, his eyes were dark, "I look forward to seeing the fruit of your efforts come to pass. Kagome, pet, I have a task for you." As he spoke, he picked up a tall, clear glass from the small table beside his throne. The liquid inside was dark red and he stirred it idly with this finger.

Kagome's back stiffened and she bowed a second time, "Of course, my king."

As she straightened, she saw the amused smile he wore, "Come here my dear." He looked behind her, at Gunnar, "you can leave us now."

She moved forward as her commanding officer went the opposite direction and she fought to control her trembling hands. She held no loyalty to their king, besides the oaths that bound her to him. Gunnar, however, she trusted and respected. It was one thing to be in the room with her king and the commander, but it was a very different affair to be alone.

She stopped before King Galbatorix's throne as he leaned forward. His frame was hulking beside hers, despite sitting. His fingers, calloused from years of hard training, grasped her chin firmly and he leaned forward until their faces were close.

"The Varden intend to rise against me. They plan to destroy me and my kingdom," he scoffed, "as if they could." His eyes were wickedly dark and in that moment, Kagome nearly lost herself to the hatred that loomed before her. If she considered it, the creature before her was pitiable, lost to himself as he was, but Kagome did not believe he deserved her pity. If given the chance, she would turn against this madman and the hell he had delivered to her.

Immediately, she thought of Eragon and Brom coming to save her in the dead of night. It was a dream she commonly conjured, especially during the darker days of her imprisonment. Where were they now? Had they joined the Varden – like King Galbatorix vehemently claimed- or were they hiding somewhere?

Her eyes focused on the evil man before her, rather than to her fairytale dreams. She would never be able to escape, that she knew.

"They're daft my king." She replied stoically, she tried to pull her chin away, but his grip only tightened.

"Yet, you'd gladly be one of them." His lips pulled into a fake frown, "You're too late my dear; the Varden already has its rider." When her eyes widened, his amusement grew until he could no longer hide his terrible smile, "Eragon has reached them; along with that wizened traitor Brom. That brings us to the task at hand."

"And what would that be," she snapped, forgetting herself for only a moment before adding, "My king?" He was too smug. He was keeping something from her and it brought him sickening enjoyment.

The last time he had acted like this…

"The empire is launching an attack on the Varden; we will destroy the traitors at their source. Durza is already at their borders, planning for the battle ahead. You will go to him and offer your assistance." He watched her stiffen with displeased eyes, but she reacted in no other way. She did not want to give him the satisfaction.

"You will give this bag to Durza and you will not peak inside. Then, you will bring me the rider and kill the old man." He reached beside him and held her a large black sack. It wasn't full enough to distinguish the shapes, but, as her hands closed around the top she began to feel dread. What didn't he want her to see? "Give me your oath." His tone became more forceful now that he had told her his agenda. He was not pretending to be kinder than he was.

Her eyes closed for a moment before she spoke, "_Eka wilae taka Durza du belcah un wilae neo sja unin. Eka wilae ceisuip eom taurthr Eragon un drella Brom."_ _I will give Durza the bag and will not look in. I will try to take Eragon and kill Brom. _

The king clearly saw the loophole she had left open, but he said nothing against her oath. He rose, releasing her chin and forcing her to take a step back. She stood still as he moved behind her.

She did not dare look as his footsteps echoed while he descended the stairs, nor when she heard a soft clang as he picked up something. "I have a gift for you rider." She listened carefully and finally he stood before her again.

In his hands was a sword sheathed by a fine blue color. Its pommel was light blue with a large aquamarine embedded into it and its hilt was made from black leather. The guard was the same light blue as the pommel and twisted elegantly. King Galbatorix unsheathed it, revealing a blade aquamarine in color, with a long, smooth edge and a thin width. "Kill Brom with this, not Enāmbracr."

"What do I call this blade?" She asked quietly as she took it from his hands to admire it. Once, it would have brought her awe. Now, she knew that swords, beautiful as they could be, were deadly. If the king wanted her to have it, his reasons were not pure.

His eyes glinted darkly, "Undbitr."

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Kagome gathered her things quickly, ignoring the lump in her throat and the string of her eyes.

_It is okay to be sad Kōzan. _

She ignored her dragon's presence as well as his encouragement. He was wrong. If she was upset, she wouldn't be able to kill Brom. She would not be able to subject Eragon to the same life she had been forced into living. So, she pulled herself together. She had changed back into her own armour and had Undbitr at her side along with a handful of essentials in her pack. The servants had even brought a large bag of dried meat for her not so lengthy journey.

_You care for them, that isn't your fault. _Cinder continued and she rubbed her eyes, forcing back the sniffles that wanted to start.

She steeled herself and looked at her bed where her sword, Enāmbracr, lay. Its hilt was black and its pommel the same, in the center a star shaped amethyst crystal shone. The guard matched, curving down masterfully before ending in a small arch. Its sheath was such a dark purple that it could be mistaken for black and the blade that lay beneath was not much lighter.

She picked it up and strapped it to her other side. _I'm fine Cinder, I knew this was coming. _She just hadn't expected it to be so soon.

He was quiet for several minutes and she heard the thump of his wings outside her room. She opened the double doors that led to a large, stone balcony. He was there, looking down at his feet doubtfully and snorting smoke. _Are you ready little one? _He asked and tilted his head at her.

She smiled a little and her eyes hardened with resolve, "Let's go."

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i luv niki4444

HI IT'S AN UPDATE! I'M HAPPY I'M SO HAPPY! XD

So here's a little chapter on Kagome's life in the capital...

**UPDATE! UPDATE! TIMESKIP: 3 months, 2 weeks, 4 days after she's originally captured.**

So, Wicken25 addressed the time skip question mark problem so I decided to make two different timelines (One a complete timeline) and a smaller timeline that showed how much time has passed since the beginning of the story, the capture of Kagome's dragon, and finally Kagome's capture to where the story currently is. March 18. (The complete won't be updated until I've finished at least the second installment of When All Is Forgotten)

I've done a bit of research and I'm positive that they reached Farthen Dur "mid March" so I picked a decent mid-March date and worked backwards on the rest of the dates from there. When it lined up with Brom's death and Saphira's hatching, I decided I'd done well enough for it to be canon in this fic. :P So I've gotten that updated on my deviant art profile and put a link at the top of my profile! xD If you're confused or curious about the time skip that SHOULD clear it up.

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_Responses:_

Guest: bisooenocmsopqpkkmbviioeok,,qeco!

_I've tried to translate this comment in probably every language there is _ I'm sorry I'm just not getting it D':_

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A giaNORMOUS thank you to **ultima-owner**, **firestone1836**, **Jayne**, **gincitri**, **Wicken25**, and **Guest**! Thank you guys so much for sharing your thoughts! :D

I hope you guys liked it and I'll make sure to update again really REALLY soon! :D Leave a comment, do you like new Kagome or do you wish she was still all cheerful and happy? Or do you think that she hasn't changed as much as she THINKS she has?

Did you like Dewain? I have so much fun writing him already. xD

_-Niki_


	16. Clever Mind

_"Here's a secret: Everyone, if they live long enough, will lose their way at some point. You will lose your way, you will wake up one morning and find yourself lost. This is a hard, simple truth. If it hasn't happened to you yet, consider yourself lucky. When it does, when one day you look around and nothing is recognizable, when you find yourself alone in a dark wood having lost the way, you may find it easier to blame it on someone else - an errant lover, a missing father, a bad childhood - or it may be easier to blame the map you were given - folded too many times, out-of-date, tiny print - but mostly, if you are honest, you will only be able to blame yourself._

_One day I'll tell my daughter a story about a dark time, the dark days before she was born, and how her coming was a ray of light. We got lost for a while, the story will begin, but then we found our way."_

\- Nick Flynn

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_**When All Is Forgotten**_

_Chapter 15: Clever Mind _

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"You can't just kill her," Eragon supplied, "she's a rider! We have a better chance of winning if she's on our side." Even as he spoke, the room did not seem to listen. They knew by now that he had an alternative reason for wanting the second dragon rider, Kagome alive.

"The king will undoubtedly send her here to capture or kill you." A twin huffed. Eragon had met the first of the -unpleasant- twins upon arriving in Farthen Dur, knowing him only as the bald sorcerer that went through his memories. He had disliked him then, now there were two.

Another man cut in. "It would be a gamble," He was well built with dark skin and strong features. The dome of his head was shaved bare and his hair went well passed his broad shoulders. His eyes, dark brown, were intelligent and sat upon a straight nose. He had a closely trimmed black beard that covered his chin and upper lip.

This man was the Varden's leader, Ajihad. He seemed heavily conflicted by their options and his thick eyebrows pulled into a deep V shape. "If we did succeed, we would have two riders. If not," he eyed Eragon, "we would lose our only rider and the empire could gain a third..."

"It's worth the risk" Brom quietly replied, "Having her would double our strength."

The second twin scoffed he folded his arms. "We _have a rider_. Why take the risk for another?"

Jörmundur entered the room then, holding something in his hands. He shut the door quietly and watched as they snapped at each other.

"She isn't just a rider." Eragon snarled, "She's the person who saved Brom! We can't repay her by** killing** her."

Jörmundur cut in, "It might be a sweeter fate." He seemed solemn as he handed a letter to Ajihad.

The room was quiet as the Varden's leader read quickly and sucked in a sharp breath. His eyes darkened and he looked up at Brom, "Cantos was been destroyed." He shook his head as the room's occupants became even more weighed down by anger and grief, "I knew people there, good people." He said quietly and his voice grew more bitter with every word, "Men, woman, children; the _king's rider_ slew them all. Only one family remains alive; it has taken them months to leave the Empire unseen."

Brom put a hand on Eragon's shoulder, silencing the boy before he could say something callous, "Kagome has a kind spirit, if she killed those people, it can only mean the king has learned her true name."

"You believe she can be turned to our side?" Ajihad asked, "If she is bound to the king she cannot escape him."

"I have a plan." Insisted Brom, his eyes were almost pleading as he stared into his old friend's eyes, "She's worth the risk."

Ajihad shook his head and, for a moment, Eragon worried that he would condemn her, "I will give you the chance to capture her alive." He put a hand up as a smile bloomed on Eragon's face, "However, should you manage to do so and she becomes a danger…" his eyes were cold, "I need to know that you have the will to put her down."

"Should she become a problem, I will do it." Brom replied without hesitation. "For now though, I'll settle with bringing her to our side."

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**March 15th, year 8000 **

Kagome licked her cracked lips and sullenly chewed on a piece of dried meat. Cinder had flown away to catch his meal, leaving her alone with her thoughts. He was hesitant to leave her by herself, thinking that she needed a companion.

Her face looked to be set in stone as she viciously bit out another hard chunk of her dinner and stared at the fire before her.

"I will take Eragon to the king, I will kill Brom; they mean nothing to me." She said quietly, scoffing when, rather than cure her inner turmoil, the words only made her heart sink more.

Dewain had once told her that, if spoken aloud enough times, a lie could become true. Yet, she had repeated the words for days and she felt no change.

She breathed in deeply, her eyebrows crinkling with worry. _Will they forgive me, I wonder. I would not if we had switched places. _She could not save him, not when she had been assigned to bring him in. _I'm not strong enough; I couldn't even save myself. Please, run away. Don't stay with the Varden. You aren't safe._

Her hands shook as she curled her knees to her chest and watched the fire snap and crackle.

She could still remember how it all started…

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**November 30th, year 7999. **

_A roar woke her that night, along with the desperate pull of something she knew not the origins of. _

_Her eyes opened and she tried to take in her surroundings. A white dragon growled and squirmed against the teeth and talons of two winged beasts more than twice its size. It was in chains and a man in dark clothing was attempting to fit a muzzle over its snout. _

_She felt herself lifted from the ground and something cold and hard pressed against her neck, "Ssstop fighting." _

_She watched as the dragon stilled and the man fit the muzzle on the dragon's now closed jaw. He smacked it and released a chilling laugh when he had finished. _

_The action enticed an odd anger from her and, with a start; she realized that that was _her _dragon. And the man beneath those dark clothes… was not a man. _

_The Ra'zac. _

_Her hands moved to throw off the one holding her, but it only ended in useless tugging. She was tied up. "W-What…?" she mumbled. Her mind felt foggy and she could not seem to remember things for very long. _

_She stopped struggling and looked back at her dragon; she remembered that she had not seen it in a while. _It is a boy. _She told herself, but she could not remember his name. _

_Her eyes drooped as a pain began in her head and she heard a muffled growl from the male dragon. Her eyes opened to see he was struggling violently against the creatures that held him. His eyes, onyx in color, looked at her desperately. The ache in her head shattered into another being. Her dragon. _Kōzan- _he did not get far before the ache snapped back into place, now much more painful and persistent. _

_"Cinder." Looking at him, her mind seemed to clear a little and with it came the desperate urge to hold her dragon. She began to struggle against the Ra'zac. She tried to turn around to bite him, but ended up screaming in his ear furiously. He let her go hissing and she kicked him in the knee for good measure. She ran then, to the dragon snapping and snarling in any attempt to get away. She knew they would catch her, she was not trying to escape, but they did not know that. _

_She wanted to be near him. _

_Her arms wrapped around his muzzled snout and she let out a heart-wrenching wail. He stopped struggling to gently prod her stomach with his nose and she held him tighter as purrs drifted from his throat; she began to cry. _

_And she continued to, even as the Ra'zac pulled her away and shouted angrily. She pushed at the one holding her and reached for Cinder. Her dragon; her friend. _

_Hands wrapped around her neck painfully, dulling her vision as she flailed; she grabbed at the hands, trying to pry them away. She couldn't breathe. _

_She was being shaken, violently, and the Ra'zac's voice sneered in her ringing ears. _

_Then, she lost herself._

* * *

Kagome squealed when something large pushed her onto her back and tickled her stomach.

She closed her eyes and wrapped around the object, smiling faintly, as it continued to nuzzle into her chest. There was something else though, something about the air…

She shook it off, holding tighter to her dragon's head, "Cinder, you're back already?"

_I don't like this place, the air is thick with tragedy here, _he answered, _we should go; before whatever haunts this place leaves with us. _

_What are you sensing? _She looked around them, and could almost see the darkness radiating around their forms.

He paused, and finally admitted, _I don't know._

The blood left her face and she jumped from her spot on the ground.

Seconds passed as Kagome snapped her armour into place, all the while glancing around their location. She had sensed something, once before, while she was eating, but had decided it was leftover fear from her visit with Galbatorix.

Now, she knew that wasn't true.

She strapped her pack onto Cinder's saddle quickly, taking note of the darkening sky solemnly. She was just about to jump onto her dragon when she caught a glint from the corner of her eye.

She turned, cautiously, and relaxed when she realized she had left Enāmbracr near the fire. There was no one trying to kill her.

The dead grass crunched as she walked, and the forest around them seemed so much more threatening. The sun flew over the horizon at an almost unnatural speed, though that was more likely just her nerves playing tricks on her.

Her hand closed around the hilt of her purple sword when the grass again crunched from the pressure of footsteps, too light to be Cinder, and she had not moved.

She swung around drawing her blade as she twisted and took a step back, in case the intruder was wielding a weapon of its own.

The face that smiled at her was eerily familiar. His smirk was cocky, his skin pale, and his eyes a dark maroon color.

_That isn't Durza is it? _She questioned hesitantly, and Cinder's answer was a resounding _No_.

A Shade, but not one she knew.

Immediately, her guard went up. Shades were, what she considered, the most dangerous creatures in Alagaësia.

They were human magicians that tried to summon dark spirits that they did not have the power to control. With a body near and nowhere else to go, the dark spirits possessed the magician, rather than aided it, and a Shade was born.

_So this is the tragedy eh? _She whispered, and caught herself before she could consider how long ago this Shade was born. Their power was not based on years; rather, it was the number of dark spirits in one body. Wondering how long it had been in this place was irrelevant information.

He laughed at her; lips curling back to reveal rotten teeth and his long, crimson hair rippled as he approached, "A Dragon Rider, how… refreshing." Her hand tightened on her sword and his eyes followed the action; his smirk widened, "That blade isn't fit for a rider; is it now? The one who wielded that must have been of my kind."

Her eyes narrowed, "As damned as your kind, yes, but the man who wore this was a Rider."

The Shade accepted her answer, but his hand reached out casually, "Give it to me."

"No."

His smile dropped a fraction, "Now."

"Is there a reason you want what is mine?" she asked calmly, though, in her mind, spells were already lining up. Her eyes took in his outfit; thick leather covered his thin body and he wore dark robes over that. She decided to assume he wore a layer of metal under the outfit, or had cast a spell upon his clothing.

_Melunach arlisg. _She commanded, pushing magic into her armour and making her body shimmer white as the spell took effect.

"Durza was right about you." He squinted at her, as though he was not completely sure what he was looking at, "You're an odd one; for a human."

She did not reply, she was far too concerned with where their conversation would lead, even more so when she considered her chances of destroying him. Only two Shades had been successfully killed in all of their history. "How do you know Durza?"

"He's taken quite a liking to you," the Shade mused and she caught the dark glint in his eye. She knew what he was thinking of; Durza must have shown him something. Her left hand came to rest on Undbitr's hilt uneasily. ", even as it turned him from Aien' coge's favor. Perhaps, it is time I learned why."

Her arm came up quick enough to block the long knife he aimed for her neck, but he lunged forward, hissing, "_Gwinda_!"

The spell pushed her from her feet and he slammed a second knife into the armour plated at her abdomen. It broke through, grazing her stomach, and she winced, but refrained from reacting in any other way.

Her spell flashed across the surface before her eyes, pulling the knife away and sending a sharp shock through his body.

If he was human, the shock would have stopped his heart, instead he fell limp to the ground and his body cracked into mist.

_We have to leave; now. _

Her lightning armour spell released and she took a running leap for Cinder's back. Her hand closed around his saddle, making her sword graze the side as she held it sideways, and her nose collided with the base of his neck. _I'm set. _

He immediately went to action. His wings unfolded, breaking saplings that were too close and releasing a thump of air as he began to move them up and down to fly.

Their ascent was slow at first, but he picked up speed as he went.

Kagome held tighter to the saddle and looked over her dragon's side, at the clearing, as they rose. Her panicked eyes sought out the dark form of a Shade, but she saw none.

They were above the first trees when dark shadows seemed to form together and take a human silhouette. _We need to move faster, he's nearly reformed. _

_I'm trying! _Cinder answered and his heavy wings picked up speed. From her position, she could almost hear them straining.

They were far above the trees now, and he began to barrel forward. He shot through the sky like an arrow from a bow, leaving both the woods and the Shade behind.

They flew for hours that night without pause, and Kagome spent the vast majority of the journey staring at the ground below them.

When they finally landed in the Hadarac Desert, she lay down beside her dragon. Cinder curled into a circle and unfurled one wing to hide her form from the world. The action caused her to smile slightly and she burrowed further into his side.

_Night, Kagome. _He muttered groggily, and his snout poked under his wing just long enough to touch his nose to her forehead.

Her eyes closed and her hand skimmed over his smooth, glass-like scales. _Goodnight Cinder._

* * *

**_i luv niki4444_**

BUM DA DA BUM!

I know this chapter looks short but let me explain! There's actually another, way longer chapter, sitting on my computer waiting to be edited. I have some homework, so I'll either update that tonight or tomorrow (depending on if I have time to do it after I finish... da homework)

x"D I'm sorry it's taken so long!

We had finals in college (AND I ACTUALLY PASSED :D) and after, I went on a two week long road trip across about 13 states of the US (I'm from Minnesota and I took the long route to the bottom of Arizona). IT'S GORGEOUS! :D I LOVE ARIZONA SO MUCH! :3

Anyway, I had a bunch of scenes written out but I had a lot of trouble connecting them. (I literally had trouble writing the last sentence of the next chapter - took me like 2 hours 0_0)

IT'S HERE NOW THO SO IT'S OKAY!

* * *

Responses

* * *

Jayne

I can understand why she would be like this and I hope she doesn't really kill brom and somehow gets away from galbatorix (I think I spelled it right) I can't wait to read more soon and see what happens next :)

_! You did :D (spell Galbatorix right) _

_It's all right here waiting to be read... .ha? ;) I want to update it as soon as possible. _

Guest

:3 Sorry! It means I freaking love your story! :D did you really try translating it?

__:"D Yes, but I was half sure that it was like asdfghjkl; xDDD I still looked through at least two dozen languages. Nothing x') __

* * *

I hope you guys liked it and I'll be sure to get the last chapter out either tomorrow or the next day! The sequel will be called **All That Remains **and won't come out for... likely another week? ! Oh, I'll set it to when this story gets 100 reviews; that way it'll be easier to manage :P So it could been a week or it could be a month. (Or three days? Idk :P) I'm not one to beg for reviews, but it looks like that will be reached with zero problems anyway. ;)

I have some free time Saturday so I'm planning on writing it then, but I'm also revising another chapter for GI and D&amp;D... and I have to finish one for A Touch of Magic. So.. xD

Please leave a review telling me what you thought and any guesses as to what Brom is planning for Kagome :D

_\- Niki _


	17. Hunt, Live, Thieve

_"Never forget what you are, for surely the world will not. Make it your strength. Then it can never be your weakness. Armour yourself in it, and it will never be used to hurt you." _

\- George R.R. Martin

* * *

**_When All Is Forgotten _**

_Chapter 16: Hunt, Live, Thieve_

* * *

Kagome awoke to her feet tangled in stirrups and cold hair catching her face. She opened her eyes and smiled sleepily as she caught sight of Cinder's neck. _How long have I been asleep?_

_We're nearing Durza's encampment._

She stretched her arms, then, she stood atop his saddle and flipped onto the palms of her hands. A few loud pops sounded as she stretched her body as long as she could and rocked her calves back and forth.

She let out a little sigh, thinking regretfully of the time she had wasted with sleep. She usually enjoyed riding on Cinder, but she had been so tired earlier…

Kagome nodded, and flipped back to sit in the saddle. _It's taken us an entire week, what if the battle has already begun? _Durza would be so pissed off, not to mention the king. She shuddered, resting her hand on the bag meant for the Shade, and Cinder sent a soothing feeling to her consciousness.

_Do not worry so badly; I'll keep you safe. _He rumbled, and she let her hand dance over the smooth scales before her. She could see the camp in the distance now; and it did not appear to be occupied.

_It is you I worry for; did I remember to give you your medication this morning? _

He snorted, sending smoke billowing from his nostrils in long puffs. _Of course._

He began to descend above the camp and she stood on his saddle, holding onto his reigns with one hand to keep herself from falling as he dove.

Her eyes stung from the wind, but she blinked past it so she could look into the encampment. It was deserted, for the most part. In the middle of the empty tents and fire pits stood a man covered in dark clothing and a hood covering dark red hair. Immediately her defenses rose and she whispered to Cinder, _Stay out of his reach. _

She stepped from his back then, closing her eyes she replied, "_Reisa_." Just before her feet hit the ground, the spell caught her and began to raise her body back into the sky. She let the spell drop immediately after it brought her a few feet into the air.

She watched Cinder rise from his dive and take off into the sky again; it was not long until he disappeared into the clouds.

Once he was gone, she turned her attention to the Shade, Durza. His standing had gone rigid and his dark eyes stared into hers. He was not happy.

Her hand clenched and she walked to him, "Durza, I'm sorry for the late arrival; we were delayed."

"And what delayed you; a great _Rider_." He asked mockingly and her eyebrow twitched.

She stared back at him indifferently and held out the bag Galbatorix had told her to give to him, "Two companies of Imperial soldiers, both who wouldn't believe I was not Eragon. You should really put the words _male dragon rider _on the wanted posters."

He ignored her sarcastic tone and his maroon eyes strayed to the bag she held to him. "What is that?"

"I haven't a clue," she replied evenly and he took the bag from her, eyeing it, "his majesty ordered that I not look inside."

Durza stared into her eyes for a few minutes before finally, assured that she was not lying, he opened the bag and his eyes widened. He glanced up at her and then back at the bag.

Finally, he closed it, and shoved it firmly into her hands. "Let it stay that way." He looked up at the sky and sneered slightly, "Call your dragon."

"Why?"

She flinched when his scowl landed on her, suddenly reminded of just **what **the Shade could do. He easily noticed her fear and a twisted smirk appeared on his face. He stepped toward her, crossing the few feet that lay between them and casting a shadow on her much smaller form.

She took a step back and he leaned forward, still towering over her, "Are you afraid I'll hurt him, little Rider?" the dark scowl she sent his way didn't intimidate him, instead, he smiled wider and his hand wrapped painfully around her wrist, "It's a valid concern _plaryn trāgael, _I enjoyed supervising his imprisonment **greatly**." He chuckled darkly as she spat at him and roughly released her, "Be grateful; your precious dragon is safe so long as the king wishes it."

She quickly put a few feet between them, glaring even as she tried to portray a civil tone, "What do you want with him then?" she paused and added, "I won't call him if you have no reason. What, do you intend to do; gloat perhaps?"

Their eyes met and there was an unspoken fight between them. The Shade found sick pleasure in being dominant over creatures weaker than him… and he had taken a peculiar interest in her. She remembered their time together vividly, though months had passed. He could recall just as well as she it would seem, for she could see it being recreated in his eyes and the twisted smirk on his face. He undoubtedly was reliving the moments.

His smile grew broader and he tilted his head, "I need to ride him. That's his purpose, is it not?"

Her fist clenched, "N-"

"If arguing will bring you pleasure, we can do it from your dragon's back. I have a war to win, Dragon Rider; I've not the time for your childishness."

She bit her lip to stop herself from saying something she would regret, then, she looked hesitantly to the sky.

_Cinder, the bastard wants us to take him to the battlefield. _

_Can we drop him in the air? _He questioned grouchily.

Her mood lifted just imagining the crimson-haired creature falling from a good thousand feet in the air. _Cinder… _

_Don't act like I'm the only one thinking it! _He defended, _Fine, fine; it will be a round trip. _

_Don't hex us now. _

_Can't he ride from my tail? I'm certain less __**accidents **__happen from there; wouldn't want him to slip off the saddle. _He dove through the clouds as he spoke, sending vibrating **thud!**'s vibrating in the air. They grew louder as he reached them and finally landed.

She smiled slightly in greeting and Durza briskly climbed onto her dragon before she could. He offered her a hand, as though she needed it.

She ignored Durza's presented hand and jumped between Cinder's long spikes.

_As pleasing as that thought is, I'm not sure the Shade is cut out for any actual riding. We'll have to start him out with the security strap. _

Her hands worked quickly to strap the Shade's legs into place. Then, seeing his expression, she smiled mockingly and tightened a belt with unnecessary force, "These will keep you from taking a wild leap; did you think I'd let a novice rider just settle onto _my _dragon?"

"And how do you intend to stay on?"

She jumped over his head and settled into place behind him. _We're ready, he's all strapped in. Though I do regret to say that. _She smirked darkly, _Feel free to go crazy though. We should give him a warm welcome. _

Cinder did not need any encouragement; he took off without an answer and flew straight up. Her thighs flexed and kept her in place, thanks to months of practice, holding tightly to his reigns, and the use of a whispered gravity spell.

Durza hissed with displeasure and his hand reached around to grab hers, "We're entering cave tunnels Rider, flying serves no purpose."

"We can't go over?"

He did not speak, and she could tell he was not sure.

"Which way are the tunnels?"

His neck curved forward, as if he was trying to hide his face from the onslaught of air coming toward him. "Just down there." He pointed towards a mountain in the distance and she nodded wordlessly.

_Keep flying higher Cinder; it's possible that the air will be too thin for us above the mountain, but we should check. Just in case._

"We'll check the air there before going down." She shouted as the wind picked up, and they shot through wispy clouds.

Durza's answer was lost to the wind and Kagome closed her eyes, smiling wide, and released the reigns. Laughing, she crossed her arms behind her head.

_I haven't heard that sound in a while. _

_I've missed this. _She replied easily, though she stopped laughing.

Cinder drove his wings faster in response, but the air was getting thinner; his breath was more labored and so was her's. If Durza was uncomfortable, he did not show it.

As they continued up, with no view of the mountaintop, it became clear that there was no chance of flying over the top and if they did, somehow manage, she got the feeling they would be so desperate for breath that it would not be worth it.

As they continued up, it became clear that there was no chance of flying over. The air was too thin at the height they were; and they'd yet to see the top.

_I'm going down; hold on. _

_Angle towards this mountain. _She envisioned the area she remembered Durza pointing towards, smiled breathlessly, and grabbed the reigns. _I'm ready. _

"Hold onto something Durza."

She saw him grip the front of the saddle tightly and his neck crane to eye her suspiciously. "What is-"

Cinder straightened out suddenly and then curved downwards. His wings and legs tucked in and he began to dive down.

Her stomach dropped and, if she were not so used to Cinder's speed, she would have screamed. A moment later, the lurch in her stomach became butterflies, and she nearly laughed again.

The cold air blowing against her face made tears gather in her eyes, but she smiled despite the sting. She loved flying with Cinder more than anything else in Alagaësia.

Cinder snorted and playfully sent an image of a certain brown-eyed boy into her mind.

She glared in response, _I do not love Eragon. _

_Why, I would never insinuate anything of the sort! I simply meant… _

_Cinder. _

_Yes? _

_Please stop talking. _

A loud laugh erupted from his throat and she huffed at him half-heartedly.

They were nearing the mountain now, as well as the ground. The trees were growing closer and her hands clung tighter as Cinder released his wings; slowing their speed with just a few flaps. Then, he straightened his body and they began to glide.

Their speed was a problem, but Cinder did not handle it as such. He dodged trees and birds alike, rising and falling as he easily made his way through the mountains.

"Where's the entrance?" Kagome asked loudly, and she let go of the reigns again.

Durza did not reply for a few moments, "In the valley ahead."

"Is it obvious?" She made out the side of his cheek rising and realized he was smirking.

"In a way; it's just behind that waterfall. The Urgals are entering through a series of underground tunnels; they were likely created for escape, but now…"

"If they want to leave they'll have to go through the front." She quietly finished, "so we'll be there?"

"No doubt the area is heavily barricaded, and under even heavier guard, but when we break through they will have no escape."

"Unless we're defeated." She countered, his hood came back to smack against her face, and a second later, his crimson hair was too close for her liking. She grabbed the hood and jammed it back onto his head. "Have you taken any precautions?"

Durza held his hair and fixed his hood back into place, "I've taken _every _precaution. We can't lose this battle, but," His head twisted around so his eye could meet hers, "if you're at risk, wait for me near the prisons. They'll likely be unsupervised, and the king would not be pleased to lose his rider."

"Right."

"Hold onto that bag for me," he suddenly added, "It shouldn't hinder your dragon to carry it during the battle."

She nodded and he turned back to face the direction they traveled. Cinder angled down and they easily glided to the entrance; landing with a dull **thump!**

Kagome jumped off without a word and walked to the entrance. She studied it for a few moments and considered that perhaps the waterfall itself was the first defense. Urgals were strong, but fully decked out in armour and holding heavy weapons… they would sink like rocks.

Her lips pursed into a grim line and unstrapped her gauntlets. _Do you mind carrying my armour across? _

_Not at all. _

Cinder waited patiently as she finished removing her armour and to strap it down with ropes from his saddlebag. Durza watched her intently, and she desperately wished she still wore her armour. Without it, she was left in thin, brown leather pants and an even thinner cotton shirt.

"Ladies first," Durza dryly replied, and she approached the waterfall a second time.

She peered into the clear water for a good minute before backing up a few steps and taking a deep breath. Then, she ran forward and leaped into the falls. The perfect water shattered like glass, giving her passage, and rising again after she had broken through.

The swords at her sides weighed her down, but after months of wearing armour someone her size should not have been capable of handling, she had grown strong. Her feet kicked, and her arms twisted in front of her.

Getting to the surface took twice as long as it should have, and she struggled not to breath in water, but her hand closed around the edge of the pool soon enough, and her head broke the surface.

After, her eyes closed and she breathed in deeply, coughing a little.

She opened her eyes and froze as she realized that a hand was held in front of her face. It was too tan to be Durza's, not that he would offer help in the first place.

She followed the hand to an arm covered in armour and thick leather. Then, up to a short gray beard, and finally her eyes landed on Brom's grim expression.

She scanned over his face; his features were too strong for him to appear older than his late forties, but she saw a wrinkle or two that certainly had not been there before. His hooked nose lay over a stern frown, and his eyes, blue, were warmer than she expected them to be. "You cut your beard." She whispered, and he smiled slightly.

"You noticed," His eyes moved to the hand he held out and she hesitantly took it, "it's difficult to fight with a beard as long as mine was."

He pulled her up, and she let him go, only to find herself wrapped in his arms. She stiffened, "Brom, I've sworn an oath." Her hands itched for a weapon, and in her mind, spells lined up one by one. She shoved away from him and her hands reached for his neck.

She saw that Varden soldiers surrounded them, and for a brief moment, she wondered where Durza had gone – why Cinder had not come after her. Then, the dragon came crashing through the waterfall, roaring.

_I'm alright Cinder, just keep the soldiers back. _He did not give a reply, but snarled at any who dared get closer.

She backed Brom up to the wall, and his hands reached to swat hers away. She held him tighter and his hand rested on hers, clawing at her smaller wrists and knuckles. She released one hand, squeezing with the other, and drew the sword, Undbitr. "Brom, your time has run out."

His eyes strayed to the sword in her hand as he choked, and a glint of recognition shone in his panicked eyes, before they locked with her own. He was silently pleading with her; hoping that she wouldn't carry out her orders.

Her hand loosened, and she felt her eyes sting with the prologue of tears, "I'm sorry." His hands stopped clawing at her own and, instead, he held her face lightly with shaking fingers.

Then, his foot came crashing into her knee. She stumbled and he took the opportunity to kick her in the stomach, sending her from her feet.

She landed on her back, meters away, and the sword fell from her fingers with a clatter.

Brom leaned against the wall, gasping, and seconds later armed men scurried in front of him, pointing spears and swords her way.

She stood, grabbing Undbitr and holding her stomach gingerly with one hand. She had not healed from her encounter with the unnamed Shade as of yet, and she had felt the cut tear open again.

The eyes of a soldier strayed to her stomach and widened drastically. She frowned and chanced a look down herself, then stiffened. Blood had begun to stain her wet, blue shirt crimson.

_Kagome…_

_We need to move forward Cinder; we cannot afford to stay here any longer. _She shook herself from her stupor, locking eyes with Brom. He cautiously stepped toward her, even as she inched backward to Cinder's side.

_We can't expect any help from Durza – an archer managed to land an arrow through his skull. _Cindered muttered, _Can I fly you straight through? _

_We can try. _

"You need a healer." He hoarsely said, "I can take you to one," He held a hand out, stepping closer; her hand landed on the side of Cinder's saddle, "right now. We'll forget about what just happened; come with me Kagome."

She swallowed hard to pass the lump in her throat, looked straight into Brom's eyes, and jumped onto Cinder's back.

* * *

Kagome had insisted that they part ways once they made it to the battlefield. Despite Cinder's warnings, she assured him they could cover more ground apart; thus insuring the battle ended faster.

Her stomach throbbed as her feet hit the ground after she had jumped from his back, and her returned armour pressed into the wound on her stomach in an uncomfortable way. Hours of battle had passed since that time, and the uncomfortable sensation had become something more painful.

She saw a glint of metal and Enāmbracr flashed into motion, beheading the Varden member closest to her. His sword fell from his hand as he dropped to the ground.

She turned quickly, taking a step back, and pierced another through as his blade drew near her legs.

_Cinder, how goes the battle on your end? _She questioned, parrying a third and slicing through his abdomen. The stink of blood and broken flesh drove her to wrinkling her nose.

A pile of bodies had grown around her feet, so much so that, to attack her, soldiers had to walk on their fallen brethren.

She heard her dragon roar, and chills rolled down her arms; she could imagine the heat of his fire from where she stood. Far away, she could see his white flames dance nearly a hundred feet across the battlefield.

The hairs on the back of her neck stood on end, and her eyes flicked to the side in time to see a flash of steel. She swiftly sidestepped, stretching her stomach wound as she jumped straight into the air, doing a little backflip and flicking her sword out.

She cut through, meeting a resistance –which she recognized as bone-, but the force of her hold easily finished the cut, and she heard a scream at the same time the soldier recognized that his arm was no longer connected to the rest of his body.

She slashed across his back, ending the man's suffering, and barely rolled out of the way, as another sword crashed down near her head.

In seconds, five men, who wore a mixture of helmets and angry expressions, surrounded her. She held off the closest with Enāmbracr and quickly unsheathed Undbitr in time to stop a second from beheading her. Her leg kicked out, sending the soldier to the ground, and her blade stabbed into his neck as she barred another blow with Enāmbracr.

It did not take long for the soldiers to dart into action again, and she tsked haughtily, parrying another sword. Her eyes flashed, and she ducked, stepping out of the reach of two swords and choosing to attack the man persistently attempting to hinder her left hand. _He knows I favor my left. _

If he could tell just by watching her fight, he certainly was not an amateur. While Brom had trained her, he had assumed her right handed – just as Gunnar had. It was Dewain that realized that she was so terrible that there had to be a reason, so he had asked her which hand she wielded her hammer with while she had been a blacksmith.

They still joked about it, though he had taught her to fight with both hands, and it was a running challenge for her to beat him her right, not her left.

Enāmbracr cut through the man's armour like it was warm butter, and he died choking on his own blood.

She felt a little guilty ending his life -which only increased the guilt she felt slaughtering the others who had fought beside him.

She knew the majority of the men she faced had never held a sword before; it was made obvious by how they wielded them so far away from themselves and left too many openings. The Varden's soldiers had no strategy to their fights, and it could not be blamed on the chaotic environment alone.

She blocked another sword, the last of the five who had originally surrounded her, and he pushed against it angrily. Unfortunately, for the man, he managed to touch her armour as he reached for her neck with his other hand, causing a flash of white to spur around her armour.

As pain caused his eyes to grow, and she pitied him. Her spell, _melunach arlisg_, was not a pleasant way to go.

With him gone, there were no others close enough to kill, but more were rapidly approaching. Nearly fifty to be exact. They fought bravely through the mess of Urgals, and some fell in the process, but others were quick to replace them.

She spun around, fighting off a curse, and realized the same was happening from a second side. The Varden members were trying to lock her in, so that they could take her out.

If her stomach did not pulse so angrily, she would have felt more at ease taking them on but…

_Cinder, I need you. There are too many. _

In the meantime, she dodged through the elbows and bulky knees of Urgals and Kull, killing all the enemy soldiers she laid eyes on. Blood rained down around her, and she left a storm of bodies wherever she walked.

Her mind kept whispering words of treason in her ear – how she was on the wrong side of the battlefield, and she should be fighting the king… and she only killed more in the hopes to crush that voice.

Because who in the Varden would forgive her if she asked to join them? – Who could forgive a traitor? How could any of them forgive someone who had had such an active role in destroying them?

Kagome scoffed, shaking her head and she raised her hand after she had finished yet another man. _"Isheim morcas." _She whispered, and a storm of sharp icicles rained down on one of the hordes of Varden members, killing enemy and ally alike.

She excelled at ice magic, and _isheim morcas _was one of her stronger spells. Sadly, it also drained her magic supply by half.

Cinder landed at her side and a burst of blistering heat cut through the second crowd. In response, she leapt onto his back and kicked those who came to close to her legs.

He released a pained snarl as a sword cut his wing, but took off. _Cinder; hold on. _She gripped his neck tightly as he flew straight up and looked at his wing.

The cut was deep, long, and very close to a black membrane, she thanked her lucky stars it had not cut through.

_We've had worse; don't worry about this. How is your stomach? _His voice was weary despite his assurance and she ran a hand deftly over his scales.

_It was bad at the start, but I had almost forgotten about it during the end. _She shook her head, _I can fight. _

_You shouldn't aggravate it! _He chided in return. _When we fight, I do not want to be worried for your health. _

Far below them, she heard the roar of a dragon, and looked down to see Saphira's fire raining down on dozens of Urgals. She had not seen Eragon for most of the battle, so she could only assume he had been waiting for her to leave the mix.

_Right back at you. _In front of her, she saw a part of the mountain had been cut out to form a platform. _This must be the Varden's equivalent of the dragon hold. Land here and I will heal you. _

The area was beautiful, magnificent even, not the cold marble of Urû'baen's. When Cinder landed, she almost forgot herself while taking in its grandeur. She jumped from her saddle and went to Cinder's wing. Her hands glowed white and the wound stitched together before her eyes. She smiled gently and massaged the area lightly. "You're okay right?"

_I'm fine little one. Come; let us face the blue dragon in battle. _

She did not have the chance to return to him; instead, she became aware of the hard **thump! **of dragon wings, and barely had enough time to cancel the enchantment on her armour before a dagger slammed into the back of her knee.

Her armour was held into place by straps in the back, rather than a slab of metal, so the dagger pierced through her skin and knocked her from her feet.

She caught herself with one hand and with the other; she pulled it from her bloody calf. _Don't hurt him Cinder! _

She turned onto her back and stood shakily. The pain nearly sent her to the ground a second time, which only served to make her stomach throb harder, but she stood firmly as her eyes locked with Eragon's from behind her helm.

He looked so different from how she remembered him.

His hair was longer and his face was sharper. She could tell, even covered in armour, that there was no unnecessary muscle on him.

Nevertheless, his eyes were still his eyes, warm and accepting, and she knew he could still smile like he used to. The mask of a boy, who had to grow up too fast, hid that mischievous grin that she loved so much.

In his hand was the sword that Brom had shown them their first night out of the village. "Kagome?

"That hurt Eragon." She finally said, realizing she had been staring at him for too long. His name felt foreign on her tongue, but it was not unpleasant. She imagined she would feel the same if she was entering her childhood home.

He flinched, taking one hand off Zar'roc and running his hand through his hair. "Kagome." She watched him as he let out a deep breath and sheathed his sword. His hands were held up as if to calm her wrath. She was not upset, but he didn't know that. "Why are you doing this?"

She scoffed, ignoring the guilt that stemmed in her heart, "Why do you think?" she was curious. What did he think of her?

Did he think she was a monster?

"Galbatorix is making you," He replied without hesitation, "he's forcing you to fight here, like he did when he forced you to destroy Cantos."

"And why does it matter?" she asked, "Whether I enjoy killing or I don't makes no difference. I'm still committing murder."

"It matters to me." Eragon softly stated, "You're still a good person."

She scoffed, "Oh really?" she unsheathed Enāmbracr and pointed it in his direction before stiffly saying, "On behalf of the king, I am to bring you in alive. Will you come quietly?"

He opened his mouth as if to say something, but then closed it and shook his head, "Goodbye Kagome."

She took a step forward, making pain shoot up her leg, and a wave of something strange to slam itself into her mind. The room spun, and seconds later her head banged against the floor as she fell and her sword clattered to the ground beside her.

She groaned and put a hand on the back of her knee, where he had stabbed her. It felt like it was **burning**.

Her vision, blurry as it was, noticed Eragon walking toward her. There was something in his eyes…. _The dagger… he did something to the dagger… _He couldn't have; she'd been fine…

_Little one! _

_S-Stay back, I'm okay, I-It's just a little p-pain. _

"Sorry," Eragon said lightly, "Brom, said you must have made an oath to Galbatorix, we didn't exactly know how to break it so…"

"What have you done…?" she whispered tightly, and for the first time, she found herself afraid of Eragon. _He's going to kill me, isn't he Cinder? _

_Kōzan- _

_Don't interfere. _She hated herself for the weakness in her voice and the tears that began to gather in the corners of her eyes. She was thankful for her helmet in that moment.

Eragon reached down and touched her shoulder lightly, the red sword still shone bright in his hand, ready to be covered in her blood. She closed her eyes.

"Go ahead; kill me."

She felt him flinch away, "W-What? No, I'm not going to kill you!"

"If you don't, the king will," she murmured; she was so tired suddenly, the pain was beginning to fade and she along with it. She opened her eyes and looked into Eragon's horrified face; a small smirk appeared on her own. "Do it – but close your eyes. I don't want to hurt you anymore than I already have."

"I'm not go-"

"That's enough Eragon," A beautiful woman stepped from the corner of the hold and Kagome numbly recognized her elven features, "join the battle. I will stay with her."

Eragon stood and backed away slowly, looking back at her hesitantly.

"Go," The elf requested a second time and waited for Eragon to fly off on Saphira's back before taking a step forward. The sharp snarl that came from Cinder stopped her. She held her hands up peacefully, "I mean your rider no harm."

_Don't __**ever **__do that to me again. _Cinder huffed, _You can't give up like that! _

_I'm tired of this. _

His answer was a deep roar that shook the platform and made the elf back away.

She flinched, and his giant talons closed around her body as he took off into the sky.

Her eyes were blurry, but she was able to see the carnage on the ground… the bodies that piled up. The Urgals were turning on each other, and the Varden cheered even as they fought. It was only a matter of time before victory was theirs.

She swallowed heavily and watched as they drew closer and closer to the ground. Cinder's talons clenched around her, nearly three feet from the ground, and he released her hesitantly. She had only a moment's peace before her back collided painfully with the earth, sending the breath from her lungs and snapping her head against the smooth stone.

Her palm spread shakily and she rolled onto her side. Getting to her feet was a fight in itself, but after minutes of work, she rose unsteadily. Her hands rested on her knees; aggravating her stomach wound further and making her knee throb angrily.

She only had to look up to discover where Cinder had taken her.

She bit her lip to keep her tears back and stumbled closer to the Varden's prison. The door to a cell looked like it had been smashed open from the outside, and a foot too big to be human lay on the ground.

Her back hit the stonewall beside it and she slid down onto the ground. Her nose wrinkled as smoke invaded her nostrils, and flames danced across the battlefield. Yards away, she could see Urgals smashing Urgals, and men downing the survivors. One man in particular, was leading a wave across the battlefield.

She could tell by his style that he had been trained in swordsmanship. He was fluid and agile, unlike most of the men clobbering away on the battlefield. His head angled toward her, and, even as far away as he was, she could see his lips turn downward in a scowl.

He felled an Urgal, two more, three more, all the while making his way toward her. Her arm clenched around her stomach and a lump gathered in her throat. She struggled to keep her eyes open; his body count was piling up and he was closer than ever.

A final Urgal fell to his sword and he had broken through the chaos. He approached her almost cautiously, with a sword in hand and his face set in stone; the air around him reminded her of Galbatorix. He felt dangerous to her.

The pain of her wounds was the only thing keeping her awake, and she was grateful for it in that moment. Her hand grabbed Enāmbracr hilt and she struggled to draw the sword. Even after she had managed, her hand trembled and she nearly dropped it.

"You're the other rider."

His statement did not surprise her, nor did the tone he said it in. His voice, deep and rich, was colder than ice. Their eyes locked; blue and steel gray.

She held tighter to her sword, and he stepped closer, leaving feet between them. She had to look up to maintain eye contact.

"You're nothing but a girl." He scoffed, and there was an angry spiral to his eyebrow. "Is this what _his majesty _considers a soldier nowadays?" The way his eyes locked onto her armour, on her helm, made her feel as though he could see her body beneath it. As though he knew all her weaknesses and strengths just with one look.

Her breathing sounded heavy, even to her own ears, which rang with the screams of battle and the roar of an angry dragon. Her mind felt lethargic, and her arm hit the ground as a particularly strong wave of exhaustion sank into her bones.

Her fingers went numb and her legs tingled strangely, as, all the while she struggled to swallow the hard lump in her throat.

She wanted to reply to the man speaking to her, but her mouth refused to oblige. If she had been able to, there was nothing for her to say.

He crouched before her, and, reaching out, took hold of Enāmbracr's hilt. He slid it away from her daft fingers and grabbed Undbitr next. The sword rang as it left its sheath, and it skidded away from them moments later.

"Careful with those," she heard, and Brom approached from behind him, "Rider's swords are few and far between now-a-days." He took Undbitr from the other man's hand and knelt to unfasten the hilt from around her waist. When he finished, he sheathed the sword again.

_C-Cinder… _

"Don't worry its sleep magic." He replied raising a brow at her as he closed the distance and ignored the soldier, "I cast a few spells over the daggers Eragon and I took to battle; as soon as it they pierce skin the magic takes effect." He took a second dagger from his belt as he spoke and eyed her wearily, "I'm impressed that you're still awake," he unstrapped one of her gauntlets and she closed her eyes again. A second later, she flinched as she felt the cold metal of the dagger dig painfully into her arm, and warm liquid flowed over the skin beside it, "but you won't be for much longer."

_D-don't h-ur-t h-him. _

_Kagome! _Cinder landed behind Brom, snarling, but did not move to attack.

The next pang of exhaustion hit her foggy mind and she struggled to continue, _y-ou th-iink… w-will t-th-e-ey… wit-h-hout…_

_It's only temporary, we'll fix this, don't worry. _

_Y-You d-on't w-worr-ry._

She felt a warm hand close around her gloved hand and then… it was over.

* * *

_**i luv niki4444**_

Why hello there! :D Sup?

This is the last chapter! When I finish the first chapter of the sequel, **All That Remains**, I'll post a little notification chapter here ;)

I'll also write a little dictionary of the ancient language words used underneath that. (I'm putting a smaller version here).

The reason for it, is because I've had to create... my own version of Christopher Paolini's Ancient Language. The words he established are not enough for a Rider that excells at Ice magic - in fact, he never mentioned what ice was in the language.

Therefore, I have studied his work extensively to try to replicate the creation of sentances in the Ancient Language. He based the origins from a mixture of Old Norse, Welsh, and Celtic. Sometimes, he used a word from one of these languages, and other times he combined a 2 or 3 of these languages for the same word.

There's no way for me to know how he would have combined those words, or how he would have chosen them, but I'm trying to maintain a similar look to the words I add into the language. :)

Example: Push - g_winda_

Push: gwthio, stob, hrinda

I combined gw (from the Welsh word gwthio) and inda (from the Old Norse word hrinda)

Annnnnyyyywayyyy xD Here's a quick dictionary...

* * *

Soul breaker: _Enāmbracr_

Ice: _Isheim_

Ice Storm: _Isheim morcas_

Push: _gwinda_

Shock Armour: _melunach arlisg_

_plaryn trāgael_

* * *

Thank you guys so so much for reading! :D I can't believe we made it all the way to the end! I hope you enjoyed reading as much as I did writing. :P

Now, this story is relatively short because of that giant timeskip - the sequel will probably be twice this length. xD So if you have a problem with this story having 16 chapters rather than 32... it shouldn't be a problem in the next!

I hope this is an okay-ish ending for the first annddddddd I'll get the sequel out after this story reaches 100 reviews!

Please review! :D Tell me if you think the new words make sense (or if you know another version of creating them) annnnd what you think is gonna happen ;P

_\- Niki_


	18. All That Remains

Hello All!

Sorry for the late arrival of the sequel – it took longer than I'd bargained for to sort out the first and second Chapters. xD

So this goes out to everyone waiting for the sequel…

**It has been PUBLISHED. :DDD The title is "All That Remains". **

The prologue is out, and right now I'm just finishing the last sentence of the first (stubborn chapter). I've also finished about half of the second chapter, so hopefully that will be done soon! :D

Just a warning; I won't be able to update very often. In December, my schedule was hell. Now it's even worse. -_- Let me sum it up without going on for an hour… HUGE family problems, way too much homework, I'm pretty sure midterms are already on their way, and I decided I want the manuscript of my first ORIGINAL novel (that I plan to publish as a book at least) finished and seeking a second draft before the semester is out.

Sorry for all the delays! D:

_\- Niki_


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